Awakening the Darkness (SI Reincarnation fic)
by ShinichiKudoOwnsMySoul
Summary: I was betrayed, used, murdered, by the man I loved. Just an innocent girl. Then I awoke to find myself alive, as a baby boy, in the world of Magi, but as Hakuryuu Ren, of all people. Why am I Hakuryuu, the fallen Kou Prince? Given a second chance, but why this world of all places? OC Reincarnation fic. I have not seen many of main characters. Being continued slowly.
1. Stage 1 a cruel destiny

Time for me to rewrite this story! Warning, this chapter will be quite graphic, with suggested rape, and murder, and gender dysphoria/transgender themes. I hope that you will enjoy the rewritten version of the first chapter, time will tell if I will rewrite the next few chapters, I am going to go with this new version and tell me what you think! Leave some likes, comments, feedback, etc! (The rape is offscreen, but implied)

 _ **"I was not born for death and yet I have died a thousand times, he thought. And now I am born again for these hard times."**_

― _**Kathryn Lasky, Frost Wolf**_

 _ **""There is no fire like passion, there is no shark like hatred, there is no snare like folly, there is no torrent like greed."**_

― _**Gautama Buddha**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter One: Rebirth, in a cruel world**_

Humans are an interesting bunch of people, aren't they? We're born, we live, and then we die. Sometimes, we don't even make it to that point in our lives we assumed we would. Some of us are cut down before our time, others are utterly destroyed inside out by the cruelty we hold towards one another.

We all purport that we love one another, yet when together, all humans can do is spread hatred, pain, fear and rage; like a poison, across Earth, stain the soil with human carcasses and blood, destroy our own environment, spill toxins into it and kill the wildlife; we love looking the other way when abuse happens, pretending that it's not us, so it doesn't matter.

Humans are an inherently negative, cruel, wicked and evil group. Not to say that there aren't any good, kind-hearted people in the world. There are. But they alone do not make up for the sheer number of indifferent and callous people in this world. They and they alone are the reason that all of this happened.

They are the reason I am now this way, a human being stained red with blood; blood on his hands. I know how death feels more than anyone; yet, here I stand, alive, and imparting these words to you, dear commoner or peasant. Have you enough courage or will to listen to this story?

I know many will not believe me now, I am not the best of people. I smirk darkly as a grin forms on my lips. Well, then, shall I begin at the end of my old life-and the rebirth of my new? In my old life, I had been a teenager living...her-that's right.

In my old life, I had lived in another reality entirely-as a woman, a young girl who had been cut down, savagely betrayed by the man she had loved-who she assumed had loved her-before I had been reborn, in this world, as a man, ironically enough. Living the opposite gender made things very difficult for me.

The wounds still hurt, but they have long ceased hurting me, as the memories of the past are fading to make way for those of the future.

So why do they matter? Why does it matter that in a past life, I used to be female?

Because, herein begins this tale. It is not an easy one.

It is a dark, violent and dangerous tale.

I am...Hakuryuu Ren, Emperor of the Kou Empire. Former prince.

And yet, in a past life, I was someone exactly like you; an ordinary, foolish girl, living her life until it all came to a swift, tragic and brutal end.

At least it ended...and a new life began.

That doesn't mean I can easily forget the pain.

In another life, I had been an ordinary female, living in a world very similar to your own. My name there was Louisa Beauchene. I was just an ordinary teenage girl with an interest in anime and manga. I wasn't ordinary, though, in the fact that my parents were quite wealthy and I, their daughter, was allowed a life of indulgence, to do whatever I wanted to do with my life.

I was not very tomboyish, I was more inclined to play with girly things and I liked wearing makeup and enjoying everything about being a girl. Except for periods and gynecologist visits, other than that, I really, honestly loved my life.

Why did it have to be taken from me?

What did I do to deserve it?

I fear I never shall understand why he did what he did.

By he, I mean the person who killed me, who stole my old life away from me and its happiness. But he also gave me a new life, one where I was powerful and strong.

His name was...I do not quite remember, so I shall just go with Jacque. Jacque was a kind, strong, and brave man, with a handsome figure and a smooth voice. He always was a gentleman who let a woman know when she was loved and cared for.

What I felt for him was what some call fool's love. At the time, I truly believed it was genuine what he felt for me. How foolish I was.

But alas, many women are blinded by love and do not see the truth.

He always took me wherever I wanted to go and was always kind to me, and for that I loved him. He listened to me talk about my interests, discussed manga with me, tried my cooking, laughed with me when we stumbled over things and made mistakes.

So, how did I die?

It all started when Jacque didn't come home one night. I sent him message after message, but he wouldn't answer his phone.

 _I had no idea where Jacque was. I wanted to make sure he was all right and not hurt or dead._

 _He never stayed out this late._

 _I got into my car and drove off, into the night, to find him. I went to his favorite bar, our favorite, we often went there for dinner. It was true that Jacque liked to call other women cute but his eyes were solely for me._

 _Or so I thought._

 _As I got out of the car, I thought I saw him inside the restaurant._

 _I made my way inside and took a seat, by myself, listening to the chatter of the people around me._

 _"Why do we have to keep meeting in secret like this, Jacque? I want to be all yours in public and private!" A female voice said._

 _I turned in time to see a girl with blond hair nudging up against my boyfriend, her hand going up his shirt, while he smiled._

 _"I can't, babe. I'm engaged to a woman right now."_

 _Relief filled my heart._

 _"...What's this woman like? Is she boring, stupid?"_

 _He started laughing. "Ha, she's the stupidest girl you could ever imagine. She thinks she's honestly interesting, she goes on about stupid shit and she's oh so naive! All I had to do was play the role of Prince Charming and she falls for it. She honestly thinks we're gonna be married and have kids. What a boring, disgusting life! I'm only marrying her to get my hands on her money; she has a great deal of life insurance, you see...if she were to die in an accident..."_

 _"How much are we talking?" The girl said eagerly, "I'll do anything if it's to be with you, Jacque. Do you love her at all?"_

 _"Not at all." He said, "She's a bore. I'm only doing it for fun."_

 _I had enough. I shot up out of my seat and charged over to him, slapping him in the face._

 _"How dare you, Jacque! Hanging out with some other...other woman...then insulting me like this? How could you?" Tears poured out of my eyes._

 _"She is stupid," The other girl laughed._

 _I stared at him, as he tugged on my arm._

 _"Sorry, babe, we're gonna go talk this over in the parking lot. She's just being a woman, after all."_

 _Most of the men in the bar laughed, which only served to unnerve me farther._

 _"...Jacque!" I cried, but he would not let go, oh how his grip hurt._

 _I was thrown against the wall by Jacque._

 _"So, you couldn't just sit down and shut up, you stupid brat? I was so hoping for you to die so I could get my hands on your money, however I did like ya, babe." He said then as suddenly I fell unconscious._

 _When I awoke, I was tied to my bed, and I was...naked._

 _I quickly deduced what had happened._

 _"Jacque...why?" I moaned._

 _He smirked. "...Women like you are useless. You only exist to serve men. You're not the first one I've killed, either. The police will see it as a tragic break-in, I tried to save you, but couldn't."_

 _He then slit my throat, leaving me to choke on my own blood as everything went black._

 _The last thing I saw was of my room and the bed around me, which was becoming red with blood...mine._

 _For me to die like that...such a disgrace._

 _ **It is not your end. Not your end at all. You shall continue to live and prevail.**_

 _ **H-How can I? I am dead.**_

 _ **There is a chance...do you wish to seize it? You can live again. However, things will be different.**_

 _ **P-please, I only want to live.**_

* * *

 _Darkness was all that surrounded me, I was confined in a small space, but I was satisfied. I couldn't move and I was happy that I was safe, warm, protected. I snuggled closer to the warmth, but suddenly all of that disappeared as I was suddenly sailing out of the darkness, toward a bright light._

 _Suddenly, I was out, in the light. I could see again, but the lights were so dazzlingly bright as something was wrapped around me and I was held in someone's arms-wait, what?_

 _A woman with long, dark hair sat in front of me, smiling, as she held me close to her. "Hello there, my new child!" She said._

 _Child?_

 _I tried to speak, but instead I made a soft cooing noise._

 _What the hell?_

 _A tall man loomed over me._

 _"Is that my child?"_

 _"It is a boy...you have a strong son, Hakutoku." A man from beside the other said._

 _Boy...?_

 _What are they talking about?_

 _When I looked at myself, I found that my fingers were tiny, like those of an infant's. And...when I looked down, I saw...that I had a...a...penis._

 _I started wailing, loudly._

 _Why was I a boy? Why?_

 _"He sounds like he'll be a strong boy." The man said, holding me in his arms lovingly._

 _I still sobbed, afraid of these bizarre people, and afraid of all of this._

 _"What's his name?" A little girl with black hair and blue eyes said, as she came near me._

 _Beside her was a little red-headed girl._

 _I couldn't handle it. I fell asleep from exhaustion at having been reborn._

 _I awoke from my nap, having found myself in a crib of some sort._

 _I was alive._

 _But somehow, I was a boy._

 _Why a boy? Whywhywhywhywhywhy?_

 _I heard footsteps and tilted my head weakly._

 _"...Hello there, little brother!" A male voice said. A dark-haired boy stood near me, extending his hand out to me. "I'm Hakuyuu Ren, and this boy is Hakuren Ren, he's an idiot at times."_

 _Hakuyuu...Hakuren? Such strange names. I'm Japanese now, apparently._

 _"Hey, shut up, Hakuyuu! Tell him it's not true!" Hakuren said._

 _I started laughing, which made them pause._

 _"He likes us! Hey, Hakuei, Kougyoku, come here and greet your new sibling!"_

 _The black-haired girl from before approached, smiling happily as she shook my hand._

 _Hakuei...?_

 _I knew that name from before._

 _The red-headed girl waved shyly. She looked to be about a year old._

 _The black-haired girl started talking to me._

 _"...Hello there, little brother. I'm Hakuei Ren, your new older sister. And do you know who you are?"_

 _I blinked as a response. Yes, my name is Louisa, no matter what you tell me._

 _She played with one of my toys in the crib and one of them was a little mirror, which she showed me._

 _"You are...my baby brother! I love you, Hakuryuu!" She said, squeezing my arms._

 _What had she just said...?_

 _I turned my head and found that a boy with curly black hair and blue eyes was my reflection._

 _"...Hakuryuu!" The two boys said, "White dragon! You'll be proud and strong-and maybe you'll actually attract some girls, unlike Hakuyuu-"_

 _"HEY!"_

 ** _Hakuryuu...?_**

 _Holy shit._

 _I wasn't just born in any show._

 _I was reborn in Magi._

 _And I was...I was..._

 _ **Hakuryuu Ren?** _

_I started wailing again._

 _"Can I see my precious son?" A familiar voice said._

 _It was the pretty woman from before._

 _"Hello there, little Hakuryuu. I'm your mommy." She said, but it sounded like she hated being a mother._

 _Either way, though, everything about her **screamed evil.** _

_I kept sobbing the more she touched me._

 _"He doesn't seem to like me." She said._

 _I calmed the second I was in Hakuei's arms._

 _From then on, that woman (or Gyokuen Ren) and I had a tenuous relationship. She was shocked when her son didn't want to be hugged by her, or read to._

 _I already have a mom and dad-stop making me so confused and scared._

 _"HAKURYUUU!"_

 _Oh shit. Adult time again._

 _I hid, inside the closet._

 _Being a child sucked, especially when you were three feet tall and everyone else around you was fucking enormous._

 _It was like I was in Attack on Titan._

 _Worst of all, your limbs are so out of whack and you can't do anything without relying on an adult. It's humiliating._

 _"Hakuryuu!"_

 _The closet door swung open and I was pulled out._

 _"Oneesan!" I cried out, shaking._

 _"Why are you hiding?"_

 _"I'm afraid of...Kouen onii-sama..." I moaned._

 _To be honest, he was a huge guy. Second, I still didn't really like guys, understandably so. When you die and are reborn as a child, you become terrified of adults._

 _"He's...so big it's scary..." I whined._

 _"Hakuryuu, he's not that bad!" She scolded._

 _Suddenly, in came Hakuyuu and Hakuren. Goddamn, were they tall.  
_

 _I hid behind Hakuei, whimpering._

 _"There you are, Hakuryuu! You made us so worried!" They both cried._

 _"I would've found him first!" Hakuren said._

 _"No, I would've, you scare him!" Hakuyuu said._

 _"...Sorry..." I said. Being a kid again meant you had to be cute._

 _"Look at how adorable he is! Wanna learn how to attract some girls?"_

 _"He's only five, you idiots!" Hakuei shrieked._

 _Instinctively, they backed away._

 _Why were females so terrifying? I backed away from my sister, afraid._

 _"Hakuryuu, what's wrong?"_

 _"Is big sister...bleeding?"_

 _She froze. "Who told you that?"_

 _"J-Ju'ar did."_

 _"What did he tell you?"_

 _"H-He s-said tat girls become b-bishes when they start...men-menu-measurating? Then he said you're stupid because you're a girl..." I said, blubbering._

 _"JUDAR!"_

 _A certain Magi found himself very terrified._

 _"What?" He cried, "I was just teaching him about female anatomy!"_

 _"He doesn't need to learn that now, he's a child!"_

 _WHAP._

 _I flinched and hid behind her._

 _Rule number one of being a male; never piss off a woman._


	2. Stage 2 destiny begins

A/N:The reviews! Wow, four of them already! Thank you so much for all the kind reviews~in turn, I shall update this as much as possible.

I tried playing Undertale, didn't really care for it.

I like OCs who have challenges in the plot-this, hopefully, will have shown that my writing is better than it used to be.

The otp in this is HakuKou.

Edited 12/16/15 for more coherency and depth, as my writing has improved.

Stage 2 Life in the Kou Empire, or in other words, the beginning of hell

At first, my life as Hakuryuu Ren wasn't all that bad, hard to believe, right? There were some good and bad things about it.

I mean, this is Hakuryuu we're talking about, the kid who's going to go through a thousand different traumas and wind up becoming a massive shithead who takes over an empire and uses people!

* * *

The biggest new challenge I had in this life was obvious: the change of my gender. Not to mention that I'd been reborn as the same gender of the man who had killed me. That made things even worse. But at least I hadn't warped the laws of this universe and made Hakuryuu biologically female. That would have been too weird.

Even though anime characters already look feminine enough.

You know what they never tell you?

They never tell you that when you're in the anime world, that things look just like they do here in the real world. In other words, fictional characters...they look like real people, from that universe's perspective. For a while, I'd thought I was living out some kind of dying dream-but everything felt so real that I started to believe it.

I mean, after being breastfed, stuck in diapers, etc, I'd come to the conclusion that this was all too real.

But you know someone hates you when you're given Arba as your own mom; the same woman who'd rather sink the whole world into the Abyss. Why couldn't I have had the Intention of the Abyss as my mom instead?

Then again, she might rip my eye out and be unstable.

Never have any anime mothers, ever.

The first thing I ever said when I learned to talk again was, "Evil."

Hakuei had looked behind me, seen my mother standing there, and then asked me what I was talking about.

I continued to point at her, saying evil over and over.

For the longest time, I spent a while thinking over how I could change the series, how I could change my destiny, but I didn't really turn up too many solutions. It's a lot different when you're playing the role of the character rather than watching it. Sure, we have servants and stuff and every day, they dressed me up in outfits.

It was rather bizarre, but you got used to it after a while.

I started to uh, not care.

The only part of it that was bizarre was that I was a toddler again. I didn't like having to grow up again, and deal with childish emotions and childish feelings. These I dealt with very well; by hiding and being a brat.

I felt a tug on my sleeve and looked down in time to see a toddler with reddish-pink hair near me. It was...Kougyoku. She must have been around four or five.

Ever since she'd arrived here, she was quiet and kept her distance from us, completely different from the tomboyish, boisterous spirit I was used to seeing in the manga.

Oh, right, at this point in time she has no one but Ka Koubun, and he was using her.

Just thinking about that jerk made my skin crawl.

"Hello," I said, shyly.

She just looked at me shyly, and nodded before hiding her face in her robes, embarrassed.

"I'm Hakuryuu," I said.

"Kou...gyoku." She muttered as an afterthought.

"You're kinda cute," I said to her.

She turned even more red.

"You've got a girlfriend already, Hakuryuu!" Hakuyuu said, whistling to me.

I flustered. I was only five, why was he assuming this already?

"Damn, he's a playboy already!" Hakuren added.

"Don't say such stuff around Hakuryuu! He doesn't know what it means!" Hakuei said, coming to my defense.

Kougyoku looked like she was about to...cry?

For the longest time, she could not pronounce my name correctly. Kougyoku, that is.

She would say, "Ha-ryuu, look at what I made!"

"Hakuryuu," I said patiently, looking at her childish scribbles on a piece of paper that showed a black dot and a pink dot. That obviously meant her and me.

"Ha'ryuu!" She exclaimed happily.

"Just call me Haku."

"Haku...chan? Haku-chan! Haku-chan!" She said excitedly.

Eventually, she would call me that.

I was used to that. But it also allowed me to keep a link to the past when I was female.

Sometimes, you forget that you're male, up until you do stupid stuff.

"Is Haku-chan all right? I haven't seen him around lately," She said to me as I sat there, my head hung low.

I couldn't bear for her to see me cry at a time like this.

"I don't know...Kougyoku, please, leave me alone."

"Haku-chan can't be alone. I'll protect him and help him." She said, holding my hand.

I looked up.

Her eyes widened. "Where did Haku-chan get that scar?" Her little fingers traced the edges of the scar.

"...From an accident." I said, my voice shaking.

"Where's Hakuyuu-san and Hakuren-san? And my stepdaddy?" She said.

"They're...gone." I said.

"Gone...where?" She said, tilting her head.

"They went up to heaven..."

"Why? They were so nice. Why did they have to leave?" She moaned as she buried her head in my robes, crying hysterically. I started to cry as well, but these tears shed were also bitter tears shed for the loss of my innocence, for the loss of two brothers I'd only gotten to know for a while, for the loss of a father.

Everything here was so unfair.

But in some ways, that inspired me to work harder at my lessons and fight back. As long as I didn't have to deal with Gyokuen in a day, I was glad. But no, she insisted on hovering over us protectively, whispering lies into my ears.

Only in her own mind did Gyokuen ever think her ways of comforting us were good. In reality, I hated her from day one. I wanted to protect my older sister from her evil. I wanted to help her.

Hakuei protected me as much as she could; much to my protests. I had been a rather sheltered girl in my past life, and I wanted to change things in this life and become stronger. Since I was a boy now, wasn't it my duty to protect the one I cared about most? I began training, and I was glad to have a boy's body, because it made things much easier. I would never have finicky menstrual cycles again. But, of course, boys had their own problems too.

I wanted to become strong, so I could never be betrayed again by anyone.

So for a time, I was quite nervous around men like Kouen and my brothers. I got used to it, of course, that didn't mean I didn't still think about the life I'd been stolen away from. As I did my exercises, I still thought over my old life occasionally, but I was growing more used to this life here.

So how on earth did I run into Aladdin, Morgiana, and Alibaba, you might be asking yourselves? I'm getting to that. Our first meeting started off, well, to be frank, it started off terribly! I think the others were probably a bit honestly-put off by how I acted, but when you're Hakuryuu Ren, life never plays fair, it likes to run you into the ground and beat the shit out of you.

I had been heading to Sindria with my cousin, Kougyoku, who was talking about how she was going to kill Sinbad for hurting her; with an ominous aura around her. Naturally, I wanted to avoid her for a while, because angry Kougyoku was scary Kougyoku.

I knew from a past life that women were scary when they were angry.

Besides, even though I was her cousin, it would be best to ignore her, for now. Even though she was polite to me, I'd rather remain in hiding until she acts a bit happier. The rest of the script played out the same.

* * *

Ka Koubun performed his song and dance, until I stepped in to shut him up.

"The princess here was defiled by Sinbad!" He screamed, "It is a conspiracy!"

I immediately shoved him aside, glaring at him. "I think you can drop the act already, Ka Koubun. We know you're the one who incriminated King Sinbad here."

"Your Highness-" He said.

"Do as the prince says!" His henchmen yelped.

"Haku-chan," Kougyoku whispered as she sniffed and stared at Ka Koubun in disbelief. "Ka Koubun...I can't believe he would hurt me like that."

As Ka Koubun sobbed his apologies to his precious princess, Sinbad stared at me in interest, eying me up and down.

"Well, you saved me from embarrassment. Thank you."

I realized he was talking to me, and I instantly fell into my neutral prince face. I did not like Sinbad, I knew what he was planning.

He smiled at me. "You're Hakuryuu-kun, correct? Your cousin is a sweet girl, full of spirit."

Kougyoku still glared at Sinbad with a malevolent aura pouring from her.

I said nothing for a second, before I smiled and bowed. "It's a pleasure to meet you...Lord Sinbad." Saying Lord felt like a joke.

"Ah, you already don't like me? Hm, I've heard tales of your animosity towards your mother."

I bristled, but said nothing and stood back up, forcing myself to smile and act natural. "Is there anything else you needed from me, Lord Sinbad?" I said, then frowned as my ears suddenly started throbbing. Was he...?

I instinctively looked away from him at the right moment, as my ear pain died down. He had tried to mind-control me. Hadn't he?

"Hakuryuu-kun, I have some friends of mine I'd like to introduce you to." He said, before patting my head in a friendly manner. Jafar and Masrur shot me hostile stares, they evidently did not trust me.

Pisti talked to me, and so did Yamuraiha, but the others all regarded me with cold apprehension, probably because I was part of the Kou Empire. Here was neutral territory.

I sighed, swishing the liquid in my cup as I drank a little more of it.

"What's wrong, Hakuryuu-san?" Pisti asked me. "You're not shy around girls, are you?"

"Haku-chan is perfectly capable of talking to girls!" Kougyoku said, nudging me.

"Princess," Ka Koubun whined.

I stood up. "I need a break," I said as I walked off, intending to just walk around Sindria for a bit, without an escort. I could handle myself, as I walked with my special weapon, my polearm.

Sindria really was a nice country.

I didn't even notice the footsteps behind me as I walked, until I felt someone jump on top of me, catching me off guard, as my polearm fell out of my hands and on the ground, I fell with it, landing on the hard pavement.

I looked up and saw a blue-haired boy above me; a very familiar one, poking me. "Alibaba-kun, is this person a boy or girl?"

It was...Aladdin.

What was even worse was that he was trying to snake his hand down my shirt. He was looking for...breasts?

Instantly, my face turned five shades of red as I grabbed the little brat and held him up in the air as I got back to my feet, whacking him on the head with my polearm. "What the hell do you think you're doing? I'm a boy!"

"You look like a girl to me, your rukh is female!" He whined.

Creepy little brat, what was he trying to do?

"I'm so sorry!" Alibaba cried as he charged up to us and grabbed Aladdin from my grasp.

"She's a mean lady, she hit me!" Aladdin moaned.

"I'm a boy, for the last fucking time," I growled, as an aura of darkness surrounded me. Why oh why did Hakuei's feminine features have to make me look feminine, too?

"Sorry about that, ma'am-er! Super sorry!" He said, "You're a guy! I'm so sorry about him, he gets perverted around girls!"

I frowned and nodded my head, accepting his apology.

"Haven't I seen you before, mister?" Aladdin asked.

Alibaba tilted his head, too.

"You look like this pretty long-haired lady I met. She had big boobs, too."

"Was her name Hakuei, by any chance?" I said, in annoyance. How dare he think of girls like that.

"Yeah...?"

Just for that, my fist crashed on his head.

"That's my sister, you pervert!" I cried.

"Wait a second, that means you're-" Alibaba said.

"Yes, I'm the cousin of Kougyoku Ren. I'm part of the Kou Empire. My name is Hakuryuu Ren, pleasure to meet you." I bowed.

"U-Uh, I'm Alibaba Saluja, the prince of Balbadd!" He said nervously.

"I'd heard Balbadd was destroyed. I'm sorry that happened." I said.

He gave me a strange look before he sighed. "Thank you. This is Aladdin. And uh..."

Morgiana had just now charged up to the two of them and seen me. "Who is this?" She asked.

Goddammit, she was pretty. My face flushed.

"I'm...Hakuryuu," I said.

"I'm Morgiana, pleasure to meet you," Morgiana said.

"Say, Hakuryuu, would you like to find some women with me?"

I looked at him in contempt. "No."

"About Balbadd, I mean, why does your Empire want it so badly?" He said.

Why was he broaching this subject now? I frowned.

"That was Kouen's idea, not my own." I said, "Besides, from what I heard, it was narrowly avoided by you."

"You're different from Kougyoku. You seem less..."

"Arrogant? Do not worry, that is a mask she uses, she is actually very nice."

"She killed Ugo!" Aladdin wailed.

"She can be very bloodthirsty in battle," I said, "Some of us get that way." 'Especially Kouha.'

However long it was since I started hanging out with the three of them, somehow Aladdin would not leave me alone about being female. It was aggravating as hell.

"Hakuryuu-san?" He said.

"Yes?" I asked.

I felt him trying to climb on my shirt again.

"Are you sure you're not a woman?"

"I'm sure, get off me!" I snarled.

"But!"

The second his hand touched my chest, I threw him out of my room.

"Keep him out of my room if he's going to act that way." I said in annoyance.

"Aladdin, stop that! Hakuryuu doesn't like that, he's clearly a boy, he doesn't have boobs, get over it!"

Well, I thanked myself for the fact that I hadn't altered history and made Hakuryuu physically female.

On that very same day, Aladdin called me aside.

"Hakuryuu-san, I think we have something to talk about."

"And what would that be?" I said.

"You see, I looked at your rukh, and I noticed that it's very pink. I know that in another life, you were a girl."

"I'm not a girl, I am a boy," I said, wanting to strangle him.

"No, you're not! You're female!"

"Are you saying he's a girl again?" Alibaba called in exasperation.

"Look, Morgiana's a girl! And that princess's a girl! Does he look like a girl to you?"

"No...?" He said.

"Aladdin, people's rukh has nothing to do with what gender they are. It's either a physical or mental thing." Alibaba lectured.

"You should stop bothering him about this. He said he doesn't want to hear that again." Morgiana said.

"So what do you Kou Princes do for fun?" Alibaba said.

"Well, I train, fight, plan to enter dungeons and deal with the craziness of my siblings."

"So it runs in the family?"

Just for that, I hit him with my polearm.

"So what are you doing here, Hakuryuu-san?" Morgiana asked.

"I'm here to explore the dungeon of Zagan...Lord Sinbad will be taking us there."

"Indeed I will." He said, still smiling at me invitingly.

As we traveled on the boat, I kept having nightmares about me cutting people's heads off and laughing while I did it.

Disturbing stuff.

Then I felt someone shaking me, as my eyes flew open.

"Who is it?" I muttered, rubbing my eyes.

"Hakuryuu-san!"

It was Morgiana.

I stared up at her, then back down at my bed.

"You were crying in your sleep."

"I was not!" I said, wiping them away.

"Yes, you were. Is there a problem?" Morgiana asked.

Goddamn these male hormones. I was staring at her chest, and then an odd sensation went through me.

I looked down...

Oh no, what was that?

I had an...immediately, my face flushed, and I got a nosebleed.

"What's wrong, did something happen to you?" Morgiana pressed.

"Nooooo, no, Lady Morgiana, it's nothing, please leave the room now!" I said.

"But why?" She asked. "Are you bruised somewhere?"

She started to lift up the covers, and I panicked.

"No! Nothing!" I said, clamping my legs together.

Why did I have an erection?

I didn't want to see girls as objects, yet my body thought otherwise.

"I heard Hakuryuu has a crush!" Alibaba teased.

"Shut up." I said.

"Aw, he's so cute!" Alibaba teased.

"Touch me again, Lord Alibaba and you're dead," I hissed.

"You're no fun."

"We will be going into a dungeon. A serious attitude is best." I said.

"I thought we were friends!" He moaned.

"I do not require allies." I said.

"Come on!" He moaned.

"Let him have time to himself, you're being a brat." Morgiana pointed out, which made Alibaba throw himself to the floor.

Aladdin just would not leave me alone.

"Hakuryuu-san-"

Nope, not even close.

I immediately walked away from him.

As we approached the island of Zagan, I felt myself get excited. Was I scared? Fearful? No, it was a different feeling, it was the desire for...power.


	3. Chapter 3 zagan

**I love how many people are enjoying this fanfic so far. It should be a wild ride! I hope you will all enjoy it as much as I have been enjoying writing it. It is dark, but hey, it's Hakuryuu we're talking about. Nothing for him is easy. And just putting an OC into his role won't make it any easier. I won't be holding back. I have ants in my house, and will be contacting an exterminator in a few days. Ugh...at least they're small ants. Still. Being afraid of bugs does a number on your psyche. You know, with a pet in the room, it makes it extra hard. But these little guys have not been too bad...Soto Aikido, your kind review made me fangirl so hard.**

 **Guest, thank you for telling me Hakuryuu was a bit OOC. In the future, I hope for more of your critique. That was my mistake.**

 ***Alibaba having a fear of water is a reference in my story Compromised Reality, where he is another character from a different reality who lands in that world. That character's afraid of water. But here it's just gonna be a running gag.***

 **The OC is going to be a bit wary of others, after all she was tortured to death and betrayed.**

* * *

 **Stage 3 Zagan's trials (and nightmares of another life)**

Being on a boat wasn't all that bad. It was just Alibaba screaming over water that made it hard for me to concentrate on my reading, or my practicing. I didn't remember him having this weakness before, which led me to wonder if I had somehow changed the universe in some way when I had landed here as Hakuryuu.

I quickly reassured myself that this wasn't the case and I was just being paranoid. Of course, this happened after I'd panicked a thousand times over and over again mentally about Zagan.

One dream I had was a terrifying one.

 _Zagan loomed over me._

 _"Hmm, how interesting! You are not really a boy! You are a female! Interesting! So I guess there's more to the crybaby than meets the eye!"_

 _I flinched. "I'm not a girl! I-I've come here to conquer you!"_

 _He laughed hysterically. "Really now? I'm a sucker for cute girls!"_

 _"I'm NOT a girl!" I cried._

 _Then after that, Zagan chased me, claiming I was a girl. All hell broke loose with everyone laughing at me._

* * *

Then I woke up, happily not a girl. I mean, who missed periods? I didn't. No more of those. Well, males had their own problems.

"I hope he doesn't see right through me..." I moaned, tears pricking at the corners of my eyes. Not again! Why did being Hakuryuu mean I had to be a crybaby? C'mon, Alibaba bawls more times than I did, so why me?

If there was one thing I hated about the guy, it was that he couldn't see reason with people. I mean, c'mon, Kassim backstabbed him so many times and Alibaba's still whining that Kassim's his friend as he stabs himself and turns himself into a demon.

Yeah, because that's totally what friends do.

Of course, the person by my side right after I'd had a nightmare, much to my embarrassment, was Morgiana. Dammit, why was it from male vision, females looked so cute? Was I really that cute as a female?

The more Morgiana was around me, the more my hormones started to act up. How are you supposed to react when a cute girl comes toward you (even though you feel like you're suddenly a lesbian, even though you're in the body of a boy...) it's awkward.

It's awkward to look at her, even say something, when she's there.

"Hakuryuu-san, are you okay? I heard you screaming in your sleep." She said, oblivious to my _now reddened_ face and...

I looked down at my covers, and then that's when I saw _it._ My face turned even more red. "...Miss Morgiana...good morning...g-good morning..."

"What's wrong?" She said, coming closer to me.

I moved away from her. "...Miss Morgiana, please...go outside of the room."

"Why?" She asked.

"I feel better now... _already_!" I said, feeling my face heat up even more.

"Are you sick...your face is all red?" She asked.

'Look at that cute face, those cute eyes...'

My face flushed.

"I just need my privacy right now..."

She blinked. "Okay. Sorry for disturbing you."

I glared down at my body for a few moments. Damn male body parts and erections. So awkward.

"Ryuu's got a girlfriend!" Alibaba teased, which caused Morgiana to flush and me to as well.

"That's not true! Miss Morgiana and I are just friends, so please do stop with that talk, Lord Alibaba!" I said, glaring at him.

"Someone's in denial!"

"This coming from the person who can't score one girl?"

This caused him to nearly fall over in shock.

" _That's not true_! On the island, I'll show you I can!"

"I don't think Alibaba-kun could do that to save his life. I've gotten more women than he has."

"Aladdin! Why do you always butt in where you're not wanted?" Alibaba cried, which culminated in an argument between the two of them, causing me to laugh, and which ended with Alibaba sitting in a corner, pouting.

"I'll show you...I'll show you!" He cried.

"Admit it, Alibaba-san. You're a loser." Morgiana said.

"MORGIANA, YOU'RE BETRAYING ME, TOO!"

"It's not betrayal if it's the truth, and remember we're on a boat."

"AHHHH! Damn Kassim, if it weren't for him throwing me in the water, I wouldn't be afraid of something so stupid!"

"Why did he do that to you anyway, Lord Alibaba?" I asked, determined to know why this timeline was so different. Now I sounded too much like Future Trunks.

"Well, afterwards I kicked his ass. I guess he did it because I was being a brat."

I was glad I wasn't Alibaba in that moment. Poor guy.

I could already see where the poor guy had been cursed on the side of his neck.

I mean, he had already suffered from being bitten on the neck by one of Ithnan's snakes.

Then, my arm...it was going to be...infected.

I stared at my arm. I'd better cherish the time I had with it now. It was going to be gone soon enough, in a heartbeat.

"What's got you upset, Ryuu?" Alibaba teased.

"Nothing," I mumbled.

"You look like you're going to be seasick." He said.

It was true, the churning of the waves was doing that to me, but not as badly as it was to him. For once, I was glad I was not a female. Could you imagine exploring a dungeon and having cramps? I flinched at the thought.

"Alibaba, we're at the island, time to get off the boat." Morgiana said, helping Alibaba step off.

"Blue stuff...water..." Alibaba whispered, shaking violently, which caused Morgiana to kick him face-first into the sand.

"Hey!"

"Grow up," Was all she said.

* * *

"Mor-san is right." Aladdin chirped, in his own little world like usual.

"Stop betraying me, Aladdin!" Alibaba said, as tears flew out of his eyes.

"Now, who's the crybaby, Lord Alibaba?" I said, smirking slightly. Static electricity flew around us.

"I'll show you, Hakuryuu! I'll show you all! You're all my enemies!"

This caused everyone to laugh.

"Pointing out your flaws is not the same as betrayal." Morgiana said.

"Yeah, you're right." Alibaba said. "At least I'm not the crybaby Ryuu."

"Don't worry about him. He's just a bit wary of you." Morgiana said.

"That's quite all right, Miss Morgiana. I do not trust in anyone, either."

The sad look she gave me was all I needed to know that I had saddened her.

"You can trust in us."

"I suppose I can," I said with a small smile.

"You've changed a little, Hakuryuu! You're happy. Even if you are a very weird boy...your rukh still tells me you're female."

"I'm not female." I muttered, a dark storm cloud brewing over me. God bless anime for being able to bend logic like this.

"We've gone over this a thousand times before." Morgiana said.

"Sorry, Mor-san." Aladdin said, sinking to the ground.

We ran into Alibaba's brothers, Sahbhmad and Abhmad.

Abhmad preferred to ignore all of us, until he saw me. He knew I was a Kou Prince once Alibaba mentioned the Ren name and slunk away from me.

"Kou Empire..." He mumbled.

"You must be a Kou Prince, then! Pleasure to meet you!" Sahbhmad said, extending his hand.

"You're Lord Alibaba's brother, then." I said coolly, imitating Kouen's tone he always used. Neutral, but respectful.

Alibaba was watching me cautiously.

I was not going to fail. I mean, I wasn't going to show any hostility towards them.

Abhmad yawned, probably intending to get out of this awkward situation.

Alibaba obviously didn't want to spend any more time with his beloved brother, too, if the looks he was shooting him were of any indication.

"Brother, I'm bored." Abhmad said.

Maybe there was more to Abhmad than met the eye, though he wasn't the best person in the world.

"Do you and your brother get along well, Lord Alibaba?" I asked.

"About as well as a wolf and a sheep do, Hakuryuu." He said.

"I suppose that's an accurate answer." I said, scratching my hair with one hand.

As we were eating food on the island, I saw Alibaba attempting to hit on women. Attempting being the right word.

"Hey, pretty ladies, you're so cute!" He said.

"I have a husband."

Sure enough, a big tall silhouette stood above the blond.

"Are you trying to hit on my wife?" He boomed.

"No..." Alibaba said, looking very flustered. "Why do the cutest ones have to be married?"

"It's a curse." I said, "The curse of being male."

"I have to agree with you there, Hakuryuu!" Alibaba said. "Hey, I don't see you doing anything to attract women! You're as much of a loser in this as I am!"

I looked over to the side and saw that Aladdin was already succeeding with women.

* * *

"Hi there!" Alibaba said, attempting to try again with another woman.

Both of us looked on in horror. The woman who turned her head... _looked exactly like Elizabeth._

"Hello there!" She said.

"Uhhhhhhh..."

Poor Alibaba. His face was frozen stiff. He looked utterly catatonic.

So was I. I'd never seen something like this before.

When I saw Elizabeth on the screen, I'd burst out laughing, but being face to face with someone that looked like her...it was _like a legend!_ I mean, Magi fans and I joked about it, but never did I think I would actually meet her!

I never thought it would be horrifying. But the frozen look on my face also indicated to Alibaba that he was not alone in his suffering.

"Hello there, young men. Are you lonely?"

"Um, no!" Alibaba said hurriedly.

"I'm not lonely, either." I said.

"Nonsense, come and keep me company. I've had barely any men look at me." She moaned.

"Really, that's funny."

"You seem like a very handsome and nice young man. What's your name?" She said before putting her hand on Alibaba's shoulder. Alibaba shuddered.

He looked like he wanted to pass out.

"And what about you...?" She said before putting her hand on my shoulder as well.

"H-Hakuryuu..." I said, "There's somewhere I need to be..."

Morgiana was sitting there with a satisfied smile on her face.

"Nonsense, come spend some time with me. I do so love princes. Princes are so handsome and both of you are."

"You think I'm handsome...!" Alibaba cried, jumping for it. "I don't know whether I should take that as a compliment or an ins-"

"What do you mean?" She said.

"It's a compliment!" He yelped.

Before the ugly woman (not that it was her fault she'd been born that way, just that the Magi verse saw it as funny to screw with Alibaba any chance it got) could do anything to us, suddenly Aladdin dove in.

"BREASTS!" He screamed.

Both of us looked on in horror as Aladdin tried to...and the woman screamed as he tried to do things, that, in my world, would've had him sent to jail for. Why was he supposed to be innocent again?

"Stop that, Lord Aladdin!" I cried, whacking him on the head with my polearm.

"I'm just trying to have fun." He whined.

"Fun? You're assaulting her!" Alibaba cried in horror.

"I just saved both of you from that ugly lady, Alibaba-kun." Aladdin said, which turned out to be a mistake, as the woman had heard every word we were saying.

"You think I'm ugly...huh?" She said, pounding her fists together.

"We didn't say that, he did!" Alibaba said, pointing at Aladdin.

"You think I'm ugly, boy?" She said, picking up Aladdin, enjoying his struggles. "Well, then feel free to try my cooking."

"We've had a lot of fun here, haven't we?" Morgiana said smugly.

"Fun? What part of tasting poison is fun?" Alibaba moaned.

I had the same reflex. "I-It has been a most u-unforgettable night, hasn't it?" I muttered.

"Hakuryuu, do you feel the torment we men have had to go through tonight?"

"Most definitely." I muttered. I never thought I'd have to run into Elizabeth's sisters everywhere. Why did she follow Alibaba everywhere? It was terrifying.

"Have you met a woman like that before, Lord Alibaba?" I asked.

"Y-Yes...why does she keep on following me?"

"Face it, no girl wants you when you act like that."

"Ahhhh! Morgiana, that hurts."

"It's the truth, Alibaba-kun." Aladdin said.

"You guys claim to be my friends! Come on, Hakuryuu, please...show mercy!" He cried, tugging on my shirt.

I just looked at him with boredom on my face. "Yes, you're a loser, Lord Alibaba."

"You're all my enemies!" He cried, scooting away from us. But then a few seconds later, he resumed his calm nature. "I suppose I do need to up my game."

'Don't be so rude to girls,' I thought sarcastically, smirking in triumph.

Perhaps he'd wind up with Kougyoku. They did make a nice pair.

* * *

While we were having fun and drifting off to sleep, I happened to notice a few figures watching us. It was a man with a stern look on his face, and a girl with bluish-green hair and an emotionless look on her face.

The girl looked at me and her eyes widened in recognition, before she smiled lightly at me. She knew who I was. She knew. Then I remembered who she was. That was Dunya...and Isaac!

Al-Thamen was already here. Crap. Now, of all times...

"What're you looking at, Hakuryuu?" Alibaba asked, nudging me.

By the time I turned to look, they were already gone.

"Someone was watching us." I replied, simply.

They all looked at me.

"Who?"

"Al-Thamen is here." I said.

"How do you know about them?" Aladdin asked.

"They have ties to the Kou Empire." I said darkly.

"I figured...as much...so the people who gave me this mark on my neck.."

"That's them. That's like their calling card." I said sarcastically.

Did I really want to fall into depravity? I was reminded of Kassim and Dunya and froze.

No way.

I did not want to fall into depravity.

"What will we do if they're after us?" Alibaba asked.

"I think they intend to conquer Zagan before us." I said.

"Well, we won't let them!" Alibaba cried, getting back up to his feet. "Who's allied with them in the Kou Empire...?"

"I...I can't say. Let's just say they have ties to important officials." 'Like my mother...' I thought, darkly. Was she watching her beloved son now? Was she laughing coldly upon seeing me attempt to conquer a dungeon? Were we walking into a beehive set for us by Al-Thamen?

"You have a scary look in your eyes, Hakuryuu-san," Morgiana pointed out.

"It's nothing." I said. "And...I do have some things I wish to tell you guys. But I will wait until later, when we have stopped Al-Thamen."

Who said I couldn't be a bit more honest about my past? I mean, it couldn't hurt anyone.

I wanted to be honest about my life. Being dishonest would lead me down the path of depravity. And I didn't want that.

"It must have to do with those nightmares you've been having, Hakuryuu-san. Last night, I heard you screaming in your sleep."

* * *

My eyes widened. Had she heard me screaming about the night I'd been murdered and the night my brothers died? And those nightmares I had about killing Jacques as Hakuryuu. Not that he wouldn't deserve it.

But remembering the blood dripping from my throat...it was a gruesome thought.

And in this world, death awaits behind every corner.

Well, the dungeon was pleasant enough, until we ran across Al-Thamen, and Zagan.

"Well, well, if it isn't some humans! I hate humans. Which one of you intends to conquer me?" He asked, his vines snaring around us.

"I would like to!" Alibaba cried.

"Uh uh uh, you already have one Djinn. That's cheating." He said. "What about you?" He said, before looking at Morgiana.

"I-"

"On second thought, you're too boring. I need someone with some personality. You're a Magi. I don't like people who don't respect plants."

Finally, he looked at me. I flinched, what was I supposed to do when confronted by an otherworldly being with crazy powers?

"Hm, aren't _you_ an interesting individual. A Kou Prince. I've heard of many of you. Kouen, your brother. Kouha."

"I would like to conquer you!" I cried.

He burst out laughing. "I'd like to see you try, kid."

"I will try." I said determinedly.


	4. Chapter 4 depravity

**A/N: To reviewer pancakes, I have done some thought and would like to say that for my story,** _ **Hakuryuu is bigender, in other words, he identifies as two genders, not just one**_ **. You see, I don't wish to completely destroy** _ **who**_ **the female OC was in her past life, because that would just be replacing her with someone else, and** _ **her identity still matters to me, hence**_ **why she still sees herself as female even in a male body and life. For the most part, though, I will still be using male pronouns for Hakuryuu, because though part of his identity is female, the other is male and is more prominent. However, these thoughts still come into play. Also, I will not be necessarily replaying the same events as canon, as that is boring and uninteresting.**

 **Thank you for continuing to read! I appreciate your intake on things. Keep in mind that I am not perfect-ah, and also I am autistic-(high-functioning), so if some things seem a little OOC or a bit 'unemotional'-grasping the human psyche is still something I struggle with every day. It's a harsh battle. But I'm getting there, ha ha. Plus my family thinks my fanfics I write are 'stupid' and a 'waste of time.' Well, I highly disagree.**

 **You know how most of the events play out from watching the show, so forgive me if I may gloss over some scenes (because I mostly want to cover my own thoughts on things and not just the canon, too many authors make the mistake of relying only on canon and not doing work themselves and it makes for boring writing, at least from my standpoint.) So yeah, Hakuryuu gets Zagan, etc, etc. I'm going to mostly cover his past life, his nightmares, and his development as a character in this-because s/he is going to try and change his/her life. So I'm going to do something I've never seen OCs in a story like this do before...you'll see. I'm excited.**

 **There are some flashbacks here from when Hakuryuu was young and when he was previously female, and then it's on to Zagan. I want to cover his nightmares and his early life a bit.**

 **Go ahead and review again, pancakes. I just wish I knew your account...TT**

 **Stage 4 Revelations and Dark Djinns**

* * *

I was so screwed. _I was so screwed,_ I told myself, as I twirled my pencil in circles, nervously, staring down at the piece of paper before me. It was a simple test, a simple exam, so why did it have to instill so much anxiety in me? I froze, tried to take a simple breath, then composed myself.

I wrote in answers, quickly, furiously, perhaps a bit too fast. People have always told me I move too fast for my own good, and do things without thinking. Perhaps that was why I always had enormous anxiety when it came to ridiculously simple things-like, tests.

Tests were supposed to be so easy, teachers told us, but then one second, they went over information, the next, bam, you suddenly had no clue _what_ you were doing, what you were supposed to know or supposed to be doing, and if you fail, it's your fault for not listening in class.

I held the results in my hands, my palms sweaty, and read over the result. I hadn't done as well as I thought I would have. It was written In big red letters on the paper; the letter of death; the big, red, F. _F, for failure_. F, for big freaking disappointment to the family.

I skulked inside my house, too ashamed to show my parents the grade. But they loomed over me, like big shadows of death, giants.

"What grade did you get on your test, Louisa? I'm sure you did well, honey." My mother said.

I swallowed, and handed her the paper, waiting for Fate's testimony.

"...An F? Young lady, Fs are not to be tolerated in this household! You obviously have been on the internet too much for your own good! Go to your room!"

I opened my mouth to speak, once again, "But that's not fair! I didn't know I had a time limit!"

"You should be prepared for these things, my daughter. Now go to your room and no technology for the day."

I sat, sulking in my room. What had I done to deserve this?

Nothing. That's right, I'd done _**nothing to**_ study for this test, and as a result, I'd paid the price. Heavily.

As I lay there on the bed, pondering my fate, suddenly the ground opened up beneath me and vines started ensnaring me, dragging me down, pulling my house down with it. I watched my parents get swallowed up in vines.

"Stop it! Stop it, please!" I cried.

But the vines continued to choke me, stifle my own breathing, and then I felt something else...something hot. Fire.

A person was there, near me, on fire. He carried a huge sword, flames jumping off it and landing on my fingers as well. Everything went up into a haze of bright red. Bright red, flames, fire, flames, flames.

A burning pain on my face...fire everywhere.

Someone was calling my name. Who was it?

"...Ha..."

Who was calling me?

"Haku..."

Stop it. I can't breathe, I'm covered in dirt and earth...suffocating.

(the past starts here)

" _Hakuryuu!"_

At that instant, my blue eyes flew open and I lifted my head, drowsily, from where I had been resting it against a wooden desk. I looked up, abruptly, in time to see a giant standing over me.

"Hakuryuu, you shouldn't have fallen asleep in the middle of your lessons!" A dark-haired man said to me.

Blinking in confusion, I suddenly realized what was going on, and where I was. A quick look around the room showed me that this was my brother Hakuren's room, and he had been teaching me basic training and etiquette for Kou Princes, when I'd fallen asleep.

As my mind settled back into real life, I remembered, again, that I was, while mentally an eighteen year old, physically I was a five year old boy. _Awkward._

"...I'm sorry, Brother." I mumbled, looking down at the ground, feeling like such an idiot. Who was I to disregard basic survival lessons? If I wanted to survive in this world, I couldn't daydream, I had to fight. I couldn't rely on Hakuei protecting me forever.

"What's wrong? You can tell your big brother anything." Hakuren said, placing his hands on my shoulders and looking at me with worry in his eyes. For a second, I felt like a real child again, alone and helpless. But then it came back to me.

For the moment, I was but a mere helpless child. I must learn about the ways of this world if I were to make it out alive without falling into depravity.

"...I couldn't sleep last night. I had...lots of scary dreams." I said, feeling my bottom lip trembling as I said the words. Damn it, no crying! Well, I was five years old again, was that an excuse to just let it all out? Let all the frustration and anger at being reborn again out? Let out all the anger and rage at being murdered and then being reborn into a crazy world like this?

"Hakuryuu, you are a prince of the Kou Empire. You cannot be afraid of anything. The world is not as scary as it seems to you. When you're older and stronger like me, you'll see. The Kou Empire is very strong. You'll always have us around to protect you, but we can't protect you forever. Do you _understand_ what I am telling you?"

I looked at him, wiping tears away from my face. "Uh huh."

"What am I saying?" He said gently, smiling at me.

"...To not be afraid of anything and t-to, fight for myself, and for everyone I love." I snivelled, wiping tears away from my face.

"That's right, Hakuryuu. Though if you come on the battlefield crying, that might scare people away, don't you think?" Hakuren said, causing me to fluster considerably.

Hakuren was a gentle older brother. The few memories I have of him tell me so. It's all because of the plot and of a certain woman's machinations that I couldn't spend more time with him and Hakuyuu, as well as Father.

Too bad the villain of the main plot has to be my own mother, of all things.

Why does that even happen? Why, of all people, does my _mother_ have to be a villain?

You know, on the surface, she seemed like a normal person. My mother did, to me as a young boy. But alas, that was merely a trick, as I knew from experience and from reading the manga.

I merely realized, early on, that she only saw me as a tool, as nothing but a tool to make her look better in the eyes of our father and then later the emperor himself.

"Hakuryuu, why won't you look mother in the eyes and talk to her?" Hakuei asked me. My brothers were in the room, too, looking at me disapprovingly.

Was this really such a crime? To not acknowledge your own mother who's a cruel monster?

"...She scares me..." I said, my eyes filled with tears, and that was the _truth._

This world I'd been reborn into was a terrifying place, as I would only soon find out.

"We'll always be there for you." Hakuyuu said gently, stroking my head.

I nodded my head, weakly. The shock of being murdered and reborn had left deep scars within me, but the murder of my brothers would leave even deeper emotional wounds, ones that would take forever to heal.

I can still remember the entire event, as nasty as it was.

 _Fire. Smoke. Fire._

 _Oh god_. I'd never been in a burning building before, but this was terrifying to a young child.

Everything I'd owned, gone up in flames. I'd woken up to smoke infesting my own room, making it impossible for me to even see or breathe. I fled, hurrying down the hallways, finding nothing but fire blocking every path. Eventually, I'd resigned myself to hiding in a corner, terrified and alone, prepared to die.

"Hakuryuu..." A weak voice said from my left.

I turned in time to see Hakuren headed my way, covered in ash and smoke.

"B-Brother..?" I whimpered, pitifully, for once feeling like the child I was physically, as he came towards me. God, this was heartbreaking to watch.

"Hakuryuu, you must live," Hakuren wheezed, covered in his own blood.

Hakuyuu was by him, motionless. He was already dead.

I let the tears spill down my face. Why was I so powerless?

Dammit, these were fictional characters, why was I getting so worked up over it?

Then it hit me. _This was reality now-this was my reality._

"...What's happening?" I said, sobbing.

"You must know who did this to us..." He said, approaching me and whispering in my ears, the truth I already knew. "Live on, little brother..."

"I don't want you to die, Niisan..." I whimpered, and it was the truth. I didn't want to lose some of the security I'd just now received from this life. Why was life so cruel?

I felt pain shoot through me as blood came down my face. I couldn't see. Great, this was the scar I was getting, wasn't it? It hurt so much...tears streamed down, mixing with my blood.

Before I knew it, I was thrown out of the building and into my sister's arms.

"Thank god you're safe, Hakuryuu! But what of...?" She said, but the teary-eyed look I gave her was all she needed to know that they were gone.

"Oh god, why...?" She moaned, holding me close to her and sobbing. "You're bleeding badly, Hakuryuu!"

I passed out then, probably from blood loss.

* * *

A few weeks later-

"Hakuryuu, everything will be fine!" Hakuei said, "Mother says we'll be okay-"

"I don't believe _anything_ that woman says. You shouldn't, either, Nee-san," I snapped. I was changing. I knew that. Part of me was still the same Louisa I'd always been, yet the other half was changing, into the me I now was, Hakuryuu.

I didn't recognize myself. That simple fact scared me.

"She's a cruel, heartless witch-"

What I didn't expect was the slap to my face.

Hakuei looked so angry and yet sad, _broken_. It was then I realized just how broken she really was.

"I-" I said, but she stopped me right then and there.

"Don't you say such things, Hakuryuu. It's like, like you're going to leave me, too! I don't want to lose the only family I have left! I won't let you die, too!"

She held me close and sobbed, uncontrollably, while I stared at her, unable to comprehend the reality before me.

Just like before, my way of living had been taken away, cruelly.

Mercilessly.

But that was the way of this world, wasn't it?

'I mustn't let myself think that way,' I thought as I practiced my studies, attempting to ignore the reality before me. That would come back to bite me in the ass later.

As we were fighting through the Zagan dungeon, Morgiana couldn't help but ask me if I was all right, seeing as I was spacing out so much. I quickly assured her that I was fine, though I knew she was worried about me.

Even though the three of us had just met, it seemed like we were already bonding. I wasn't about to say I knew everything about them, but I didn't want to be dishonest about who I was-or who I had been. I didn't want to lie.

Maybe Aladdin could make it easier. I didn't want to go down the same path as the canon Hakuryuu. I wanted to make things better.

I mean, I understood how it felt to be betrayed and murdered. As corrupt as the Kou family could be, they were still my family.

Hakuei? She was my sister, I didn't want to kill her or get her mixed up in the evil incarnate that was my mother. The same applied to Kougyoku. I had always liked her character, but now that she was my freaking cousin, I wanted to protect her, too. I didn't want her to get used by either Sinbad or Judar.

You know how Hakuryuu is. Doomed to fall into depravity from the start. At least I hadn't been reborn as Kassim. Yeah, nothing would suck more than being killed by your best friend.

Then again, I _already_ understood how Alibaba felt, having been betrayed and killed by the man I thought I could trust. Oh, yeah, losing my brothers at a young age certainly helped too, didn't it?

However, I was determined to _not_ let the past interfere with my life, which is _pretty freaking_ hard to do when _you're_ Hakuryuu Ren.

* * *

So of course, when Ka Koubun performed his song and dance, I had to intervene, and intervene I did, swinging my polearm into the man's gut, causing him to fall over.

"L-Lord Hakuryuu, I intended nothing wrong, I-"

I had enough of sniveling sycophants intending to ensnare my cousin. Naive or not, she was still my cousin, someone I wanted to protect.

"Forgive me for that outburst, Lord Sinbad. Not all of my countrymen are as... _disgraceful_ as this one." I said, glaring at Ka Koubun, who looked at me with shock on his features.

"My Lord-" He said, still thinking he could suck up to me.

"You should stop with this pathetic display, Ka Koubun. No one's falling for it." I said coldly.

"You have a lot of nerve, making the prince cover for you like that!" His co-conspirators said, shooting him piercing stares.

Kougyoku blushed deeply. "Thank you...Haku-chan."

"It was nothing," I said, glaring at Sinbad, who was smiling amicably in Kougyoku's direction, whose gaze hadn't left his.

Wait, didn't Sinbad mind-control Kougyoku? Shit. I had to stop him from controlling her.

* * *

Well, as I was engrossed in those thoughts, Morgiana reminded me that yes, we were in a dungeon, and that was no time for spacing out.

"Lord Hakuryuu, are you all right?" She asked.

I looked at her for a moment. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" She asked, her voice filled with a sudden finality that I found both comforting and annoying at the same time.

"I'm sure, Miss Morgiana." I mumbled, more to myself.

It didn't take long for Zagan to change his mind about me and he decided to become my djinn. It was quite awkward, though.

"You're an interesting kid." He said.

I blanched. Did he know? _How could he know_?

"Hm, who would've thought the crybaby prince has _another_ secret he doesn't want people to know...? Memories from a past life, huh...?" He whispered.

"Shush!" I cried, but the others heard.

"What does he mean by that?" Alibaba stammered.

"I-I'll explain everything later!" I cried.

"Ooh, and you _were a woman, too, were you cute?"_ Zagan said.

I flinched. "...That's none of your business."

"Oh, too bad. I wish I could've met the you of the past. You would've made a nice date. Maybe as cute as your sister?"

"Something like that. Don't you dare spill a word of it." I grumbled in my head.

"I think it's adorable." Zagan said to me, "It explains a lot about you, your femininity-"

" _Shut up._.."

"Arguing with your Djinn?" Alibaba snarked.

"I'm not crazy!" I cried.

"Never said you were," He said, though it looked like he was mocking me.

My face reddened. Great, now I was stuck with a djinn that knew my secret...well, why wouldn't it? They were immortal creatures, after all...that you contracted with...dammit, it's not Pandora Hearts, it's not the same thing! He's not my chain and I'm not his contractor.

Before we could leave, three familiar figures intervened; Dunya Mustasim, Isaac, and Ithnan.

Well, actually, Dunya showed up before I managed to take hold of Zagan. What happened was just like what happened in canon.

"Oh, if it isn't the Kou Prince." She said lightly, ignoring the glare I was shooting in her direction, "I don't want to kill you, you're one of our allies, after all. I'm sure _she'd_ be very disappointed, right?"

"Indeed," Ithnan said, "You are very valuable to our cause, Kou Prince. Stay out of the way."

I refused to move. "And if you harm my friends?"

"Our only target is him," Dunya said before pointing at Alibaba. "He is to be our new king."

"No way would I ever be like you guys!" He cried.

I blanched, I already knew the truth about that.

Watching Isaac die was painful.

"Isaac, Isaac!" Her painful cries will always ring in my soul.

As she went over her past, Alibaba saw it, too, and predictably, he made a stupid move, he fell down into darkness. Was Alibaba _always_ this stupid? Oh, yes, yes he was.

"Hakuryuu-san, it's like you already know what's going to happen." Morgiana said imperiously.

"...What if I said that I did?" I said, as we prepared to charge our once friend down.

"Explain everything later, like you said, Hakuryuu-san." Morgiana said, smiling at me.

"For the moment, we have to save Lord Alibaba." I said.

"Alibaba, I know you more than anyone else!" Morgiana cried, attempting to win him back over as she charged at him. He deflected every blow with his sword.

"Stay out of my way." He said coldly. "Join me, Aladdin!"

"Never!" Aladdin cried.

It was a desperate battle, mainly because of how strong Alibaba was as a Dark Djinn.

I tried attacking him with my polearm, but...then came the moment I was dreading most.

"You won't be needing this arm of yours, Kou Prince," Alibaba said coldly as _he sliced my arm off._

Oh, _fuck, did that hurt.._.watching all the blood leak out of my stump of an arm...I knew this would come, but why, oh why did it hurt so much?

I clutched my stump of an arm and started howling in pain, loudly.

"I like hearing your screams," Alibaba said, kneeling beside me and picking me up.

"Hakuryuu-san!" Morgiana screamed, coming over to me.

I couldn't keep my eyes open. I was losing too much blood, as she grabbed me out of his arms.

"I'm sorry that I failed you, Lady Morgiana." I said.

"No, that's not true! I won't let you sacrifice yourself!" She cried.

I swayed slightly.

"Now you will die." Alibaba said as he pointed the blade at Morgiana, but he froze. This was different. He started clutching his head. "I don't want to fight her..."

Whoa, Alibaba was fighting back! This was different from canon, too.

"That thing on his head is controlling him! We've gotta destroy it." Aladdin said.

"It's no use," Ithnan said, "Once he is under our control, he will be eternally a slave."

"We've gotta stop him..." I muttered, attempting to stand up, despite all the pain that shot through me and the blood slowly dripping from my stump of an arm.

"You can't fight now!" Morgiana cried.

"You forget that I've got a Djinn..." I muttered, coughing up blood. Standing up took so much effort. But in this world, strength was everything.

"Hmm, I'll help you out this time, Hakuryuu Ren...or should I say, Louisa?"

"Mention that name out loud and you're dead.'

'He just laughed like the troll that he was.

'This should be interesting. I'd like to see you in a dress sometime.' Zagan said.

'Never,' I said back in my head.

"Then I won't help you," Zagan said.

'Fine.'

Before I knew it, I had a wooden arm. It reminded me a lot of Edward Elric and his automail arm. Or Allen Walker and his arm. But now wasn't the time to think about those things.

Time to fight again.

"This isn't like you, Alibaba!" Morgiana cried, kicking him.

"What if I told you to stop?" He said darkly, pressing his sword against her.

"And what if I said no?" She said, kicking him right in the forehead, causing him to flinch.

"You..." He cried, kicking her backwards.

"Morgiana!" I cried, charging in to help her.

"Stay out of my way, Kou Prince. You shall die."

"You're not like the person I know." I said, "The Alibaba I know doesn't give in so easily to darkness."

"Revenge is the best path. Revenge for Balbadd, revenge for Kassim..."

My eyes widened. Hadn't I thought about the same thing? About taking revenge on Gyokuen, about Jacques? Hadn't I thought about pointing a gun at that man's head and pulling the trigger? We were alike. Scarily enough, I found myself agreeing with his thinking. I didn't like it. I didn't like the idea of not getting revenge.

I shook my head. No, now wasn't the time to think about that stuff.

That hesitation nearly cost me my life, as Alibaba took that chance to attack me.

Luckily, Aladdin intervened. And before we knew it, Alibaba was purified.

Ithnan disappeared, and we conquered the dungeon. And if that sounds a bit rushed, it is, because I don't feel like narrating all the events in my life.

"I don't think I'll ever forget that experience." I said to the others.

"Now what was this stuff you wanted to tell us?" Morgiana said, looking at me seriously.

"I will tell you once we're alone." I said, hesitating.

"Hey, shouldn't I get to know, too?" Alibaba cried.

I hesitated again. Then I sucked in my breath. They were all waiting.

Time to try and change fate.

"It's as I thought, isn't it, Hakuryuu-san?" Aladdin said. "You remember, don't you?"

"You see, I remember things from another life..." I mumbled. "I was...different, then."

"That's so interesting." Alibaba said, before he paused. "What do you mean by 'different,' though?"

"I was...I was..." I muttered, twiddling my thumbs together in a very similar fashion to Hinata.

"Was what? Spit it out, I want to know," Alibaba said.

"...I was not who you think I was. I was a...a _gi_ -"

"He was a girl!" Aladdin cried out.

That caused Alibaba to jump. " _Really_? You don't seem like the type!"

Morgiana was now staring at me as though I'd grown a third head.

"But you're not a girl now." She repeated, still utterly confused.

"Of course not." I mumbled.

"Were you cute?" Alibaba asked.

"...Maybe..." I muttered.

"I'm attracted to you now, Hakuryuu!" Alibaba said.

"Please don't say such things!" I cried, as my face reddened.

"Anyway, I was...used by someone and then...murdered. So it's not something I like remembering. And as for how I know about you falling into darkness, well, the Kou Empire has some allies with Al-Thamen, like I said before." I said.

"Aw, I wish I could have dated you then!" Alibaba whined.

"Stop that. Hakuryuu doesn't need to hear that talk! He's troubled enough as it is." Morgiana said. "So you...understand how it feels to be a girl? What is it like, being a boy?"

"It's...hard to explain. I'm used to it by now, but it's still weird. Because I died under such traumatic circumstances, my rukh still remembers it." I said distantly.

"That's awful," Alibaba said.

Though for the next week, though my old identity was forgotten as they promised, Alibaba and Aladdin kept trying to ask me what I had been like back then, and asked some rather lewd questions, which resulted in Morgiana kicking their asses.

"I just wanted to know what your breasts were like..." Aladdin moaned.

"Shut up," I grumbled, sighing in annoyance. Had this been a mistake?

No, I felt, somehow, that I had changed destiny; that destiny for Hakuryuu Ren was a bit happier. However, there were still tough times up ahead.

Now was just the calm before the storm.


	5. Chapter 5 diverging paths and fears

**`A/N: On to the next chapter! Check out Singular Poisonous Ashes and pandalatte's self-insert OC reincarnation fics as well, please! :d Thanks for the reviews, everyone! I will be starting college soon, so expect some slow updates maybe? IDK.**

 **I like that Hakuryuu's bigender. It makes it a unique twist.**

 **Meh, my family's being annoying again. To me, writing is about as essential for living as interacting with people. I have to be able to write, and I've been slacking off on it for too long. On the day I have creativity, people bother me so much that it's honestly, aggravating and irksome. Anyone else have trouble with people because they have to be a writer?**

 **On top of that, I had a few panic attacks today because of those damned ants. They've come back, only in my downstairs window. I'm stuck dealing with them for the next two days, then either an exterminator or a pest control person will do the job for us.**

 **I'm merely taking time to update these stories because I know you guys love them and I love writing them-and in less than two weeks, I may be too busy to work on the stories I love so much. So I hope you all enjoy this chapter, it's dedicated to all of you loyal readers. I just wish my family could appreciate my writing more.**

 _ **Stage 5 Diverging Paths**_

* * *

Honestly, I was _surprised_ that Alibaba and the others took my having been a girl in a past life so well. I mean, aside from the typical lewd remarks you would expect from Aladdin and Alibaba, things went pretty well. Morgiana had a good way of shutting them up when their stupidity became too apparent.

It had been very awkward for me, having been a girl in one life and then suddenly being turned into a boy. I honestly still felt like I was a female, at least on the inside, but becoming a male was becoming more bearable. The only thing that really sucked, (besides Alibaba and Aladdin's crude jokes) was how Morgiana kept on approaching me, asking really sensitive things, figuring that I would know.

It wasn't that she asked so much as she would constantly go to me for advice. In a way, I was like a brother figure to her. It was both humbling and awkward at the same time.

"Yes, Lady Morgiana, what would you like to say to me?" I said.

She stared at me for a few moments, shuffling her feet nervously, before she finally spoke. "Hakuryuu-san, I was wondering..."

I paused, tilting my head, wondering what kind of request this could be.

"...Would you mind if I happened to try some of your cousin's...wardrobe? The princess, I mean."

I froze, staring at her in disbelief. Kougyoku was very, very sensitive about anyone touching her stash of clothes and would beat up anyone who tried to mess with her dresses. Judar had once tried to take her clothes, because the magi had thought it would be funny to do so, and had wound up with an angry Kougyoku using Vinea on him, leaving him soaking wet.

"Um...Kougyoku is not someone you would wish to anger, Lady Morgiana." I said, shuddering as I remembered one of the times she had tortured me as a kid. Not like it had been that bad, but still, it was sort of embarrassing being male now and being subjected to that.

* * *

 _"Haku-chan..."_

 _I lifted my head up from where I was supposed to be doing my schoolwork, reading a book on the Kou Empire. IT made for boring but necessary reading. "Yes, Kougyoku?"_

 _"Wanna play dress-up with me, and then play swordfighting?"_

 _"No, I'm busy." I said._

 _Apparently, that didn't appease her, because the next thing I knew, a red-headed blur was directly in front of me._

 _"Please, Haku-chan, we never play together anymore. It sucks."_

 _"I can't..."_

 _She started to cry. "You're so mean, Haku-chan!"_

 _Oh god, what was I supposed to do?_

 _"Please, Haku-chan."_

 _She became so pleading that eventually I had no choice but to give in._

 _"Yes."_

 _"Great, I'm so glad you're so nice, Haku-chan!"_

 _I was actually enjoying myself during the tea party. Remember, I had been a girly girl in my past life, so I remembered playing with my dolls and doing tea parties. Although, I had to be a boy now, so this was kinda awkward in a way._

 _"Haku-chan, you seem to like this a lot."_

 _"Um, kinda," I said, afraid of what Judar might say in such a situation, he was quite a bully in these times._

 _"What would you think of me marrying Judar-chan, Haku-chan?"_

 _As I put the pretend teacup to my mouth, I faked surprise. "What?"_

 _"You heard me. I have a crush on Judar-chan." She said, her face beet red. "Don't tell anyone about it."_

 _What was I supposed to say in this situation? "Go for it, Kougyoku, you can do it."_

 _She looked at me, then she held her hand. "If only I weren't related to you, I'd definitely marry you, Hakuryuu!"_

 _Before I could reply to that awkward statement, the devil himself showed up and crashed the party._

 _"Ah, Judar-chan, you messed up the table!" Kougyoku screeched._

 _"You're still playing with girly shit like this! Oh, Hakuryuu, are you a girly girl?"_

 _A vein pulsed on my forehead. Being called that ticked me off._

 _"Kougyoku can like whatever she wants, Judar," I said._

 _"Are you a real man?" He taunted._

 _"Are you a real man?" I said, "Wearing such a long braid, having lots of makeup under your eyes, people might think you're really feminine."_

 _Kougyoku burst out laughing._

 _"Fine," Judar grumbled, "You have a point there. Still, you really are a feminine boy."_

 _Another vein pulsed on my head. "Stop that."_

 _"Fine, old hag," He said, before starting tp pull at Kougyoku's hair._

 _"Judar-chan, let go," She cried, pushing him aside, "I've got the perfect dress for you!"_

 _Judar paled. "There's no way in hell I'm wearing anything like that!"_

 _But Kougyoku had grabbed onto his braid. "Judar-chan, pleaseee?" She said, but there was a terrifying aura around her._

 _Both of us shuddered._

 _"I've got one for you, too, Haku-chan." She said._

 _"Why do we do this?" Judar muttered, huddling next to me, looking absolutely terrified._

 _"What is all this?" Kouen said, staring at both Judar and I, who were in dresses._

 _"Kougyoku," We both said at once._

 _Soon enough, we had the dresses removed, but not before both Kouha and Koumei had a good laugh at our expense. My older sister just found it cute._

 _"You're such a cute boy, being a nice brother for Kougyoku. She's so lonely, you know." Hakuei told me._

 _I found myself thinking of a certain prince of Balbadd she should be introduced to. When I'd been a girl, I was a big fan of the pairing Alikou, but I really didn't think I should ship anything at this point in time._

* * *

Whenever we got back, there was a huge feast prepared for us.

I sighed as I sat at the table, next to Alibaba, Aladdin and Sharrkan, who were all badly drunk, while my alcohol lay untouched. I turned my nose at it.

"Come on, Hakuryuu, try some of this stuff! It's amazing!" Alibaba cried, before hiccuping.

I glared at him. "No."

"Come on, it's fun!"

My eyes flitted over to the table where my cousin was sitting, definitely drunk, while Ka Koubun was panicking over her, wondering what Kouen would think of his young sister getting drunk.

Then he came along, King Sinbad.

"Sinbad-sama!" Kougyoku cried, slurring her words together.

"Would you like to dance with me, my lady?" He said in a gallant tone.

She agreed.

I frowned. "I need to go somewhere," I said.

"Hey, Hakuryuu, where are you going?" Alibaba slurred, having laughed his ass off at girls for the past few hours.

I was sick and tired of it.

"Don't tell me you're attracted to your cousin!" He cried, nudging me with a grin on his face. "Incest, how lovely-"

"Shut up! Besides, aren't you into her?"

He flushed. "Morgiana's much prettier." He muttered.

I couldn't help but look at her as she was dancing, her long red hair moving with her as she danced, those legs, her smile. My face flushed.

"If you'll excuse me, I've gotta go."

"What's wrong, Haku-chan? You've got a crush, haven't you?" Alibaba cooed, putting his arm around me.

"Please let go of me, Lord Alibaba!"

"Tell me all about her, how do you feel about Morgiana!"

I shoved him aside and waved my polearm at him. " _Lay off!"_

"Come now, we're all friends, aren't we?" Sharrkan said.

I did the only thing I could do, ignoring them and running off.

"Ha ha, look at Haku-chan go!" Alibaba cried.

"Hakuryuu, I thought we were friends," Aladdin moaned.

"You're too young to get drunk, Lord Aladdin!" I cried.

"I had some of this funny juice," Aladdin slurred.

'He's too young...' I thought.

I knew Dunya was being kept up in the castle as a prisoner. I decided to tail both Kougyoku and Sinbad, and keep an eye on them both. What I was unaware of was that Jafar was also following them.

And I think he spotted me before I spotted them.

"Sinbad, I really...wanted to thank you." Kougyoku said, her voice wavering.

"Oh, princess, this has been a magical night for both of us, hasn't it?" Sinbad said.

Was it wrong to say that I found it both romantic and creepy? I mean, that's my cousin there.

I knew that he would brainwash her with Zepar, and there was nothing I could do about it. My fists tightened as I stepped forward.

"May I ask what brings you here at such a late hour, Kou Prince?" A cold voice said from behind me.

I jumped, and turned around in time to see Jafar standing there.

I kept my stoic prince face on. "I was just...curious as to where my cousin was."

"I am sure that Sin can take care of her." He said tersely. "You are aware that you're just a guest here, right?"

"Right," I said, "I have no intention of being a threat to Sindria or Lord Sinbad."

"Sin is a good person."

'Sure he is,' I thought. I'd seen those sly smiles that Sinbad was giving in my direction. As he was dancing with her, he cast me a sly smile. He'd known I was watching them this entire time.

I frowned at Jafar.

"Lord Hakuryuu," Jafar said, "Do not get the wrong idea. Sin may be sly and cunning at times, but he is still a good person. He had the wrong kind of life."

I stared at him for a few moments, "I see. But still, she is my cousin, and if he hurts her-"

"He will not hurt her," Jafar said coldly, "You have my word."

I knew that he didn't trust me. I was seen as an enemy here, just because of my blood.

"Still, if he does, I-"

"Well, well, Hakuryuu-kun, enjoying the festival, are you?" Sinbad said, behind him was Kougyoku, who looked like she was about to pass out.

"Haku-chan," She muttered as she fell unconscious.

I instantly caught her in my arms.

"My, my, how romantic," Sinbad said.

"Were you-" I said, but the glare on Jafar's face told me that, no I couldn't bring it up.

"Nonsense, we were just having a good time. I really do enjoy Kougyoku's company. She is a lovely girl."

'More like a lovely tool,' I thought darkly.

I wondered how long it would take the others to figure out the truth about Sinbad.

"You can take your leave now, Kou Prince." Jafar said, though it was more like an order.

I turned to face them, my face stony. "Then a good night to you both, Lord Sinbad, and Jafar." I snapped, skulking away, with Kougyoku in my arms.

"Sin, you got caught. Now he knows." Jafar said from behind me.

"...Well, he is a perceptive boy. Nothing gets by the Kou Empire. If he reports that information, I will have no choice but to-"

 _"Sin, he is just a boy. You cannot do anything to him."_

"And who said I would? I merely wish to keep my country safe and to keep it out of their filthy hands."

I stopped to listen, horrified. Would he really go this far?

" _...You'd stoop so low as to silence him for not agreeing with you, Sin? You disappoint me."_

 _"Perhaps I have changed too much, Jafar. But I, too, wish for peace. Hakuryuu-kun will someday see that I am right and join my side. Even if it means him betraying his own country."_

I smashed my fist into the side of the palace wall, as I headed back to my room, ignoring Alibaba's puzzled look as he slumped against the side, clearly drunk.

The next morning, I awoke bright and early.

"Hey, Hakuryuu, where were you?" Alibaba asked, rubbing his head.

"I went to go speak with my cousin and she was with Sinbad," I said.

"How is that bad?" Alibaba muttered.

"He is manipulating her." I said darkly.

"Sinbad wouldn't do that, Hakuryuu, he's a hero! You should have seen him in Balbadd!" Alibaba cried.

I sighed. "...Believe what you want, Alibaba. But when you realize what he really is, you will wish you hadn't believed him."

* * *

With that, I stormed off, determined to go to the one person who would be willing to listen; Dunya. Dunya would obviously hear me out. We'd both suffered in the same way.

As I knocked, I heard her voice echo.

"Go away! I'm not interested in speaking to anyone from Sindria!"

I steeled myself. "It's me. The Kou Prince."

"What do you want?" She snapped through the other side.

"I'm not an enemy. I just wanted to talk." I said. "I am...not an ally of Sinbad's."

The door swung open and she stared at me, warily.

"Come on in." She said, "Aladdin-chan has already been here before."

"Are you friends with him?" I asked.

"Yes, but the other two...I don't like them. The girl keeps giving me sour looks, and I don't really like the boy Alibaba. But you, you are like me, aren't you?" She said as I sat down beside her bed.

"Yes," I said. "I lost my brothers and father a long time ago, when I was young."

Her eyes widened.

"And a certain person took them away from me. So just like you, I seek revenge. But I'm not certain." My fists tightened. Despite having Zagan's power, I still felt like a weak, powerless, hopeless child. What could I hope to accomplish in this chaotic, war-torn, corrupt world? No one would listen to my words.

"You shouldn't seek revenge. It'll make you the same as I-you'll go down the wrong path, like me. I know that Isaac cannot be brought back." She said matter-of-factly.

"You can always change." I said, hoping that she wouldn't die.

Dunya was a sweet girl who'd been used by Ithnan.

She smiled, sweetly. "Oh, I know you're attempting to assuage me, but I'm going to die anyway. I can tell. Soon, I will fall away into nothingness. That is the fate of those who fall into depravity. You, young Kou Prince, you are already going to fall."

"Is there...a way to prevent it from happening?" My voice shook.

She looked at me with wide eyes. "I'm afraid that there is not. But perhaps your friends can assist you. Perhaps we can sit here and talk."

And we did. We talked about our respective pasts, and I learned that we had a lot in common.

Then the door opened and Yamuraiha came in. Her eyes widened as she took me in.

"Oh, Prince Hakuryuu, I didn't expect to see you here." She said.

"Hakuryuu-kun and I are the best of friends," Dunya said coldly, glaring at Yamuraiha.

Aladdin came bouncing in the door. "Hakuryuu-cha-er, kun, flirting with more girls to add to your harem?"

My face flushed. "That's not it at all."

Dunya laughed. "My, my."

"I shall be taking my leave now," I said shortly as I left.

Should I ask them about it? They were my friends, but at the same time, I didn't want to lose to fate. I didn't want to become depraved, because Hakuryuu had done a lot of awful things. He'd nearly killed his sister and brother, nearly killed Alibaba.

Would I be able to kill that pirate lady? I thought about her.

She was a despicable person who mind-controlled children, but they were just innocent kids who saw her as a mother figure. The one side of me said she deserved to die, but the other side said that she needed to spend time in jail.

I didn't know what to choose. My mind was already wound up with thoughts like, 'I can only bear it alone.'

"No, no, no, I have to resist destiny." I said, shaking my head.

"Hakuryuu, there you are! I have the worst headache, and Kougyoku and I made flower crowns!" He said, grinning cheekily and holding them out.

"Do not touch me," I said coldly.

"Hakuryuu?" He said.

"There is something...I would like to discuss with you." I said tersely.

Morgiana was behind him, looking worried.

"You think you're falling into depravity?" Alibaba said.

"I had disturbing dreams where I have. And the end results have been...terrifying."

"You wouldn't, you're too nice!" Alibaba cried, but then his face fell as he remembered what he'd learned. "After the way that you died in your past life, it's certainly possible, but you're a good person, Hakuryuu. I'm sure of it."

But as much as I wanted to be reassured by his words, I couldn't help but feel a cloud of dread spread over me.

"I had a disturbing dream last night," I whispered, "And in it, this is what happened."

* * *

 _I saw a young child, crying for his mother._

 _Then, there I was, as my female self, standing near him._

 _"You're just a nobody. You're not really Hakuryuu Ren. You're just pretending." A voice said._

 _"I'm not pretending." I said._

 _I noticed the young boy crying hysterically._

 _I came towards him. It wasn't Hakuryuu before me._

 _It was a young Judar, crying._

 _Then the scene shifted._

 _I was Hakuryuu again, seeking out Judar._

 _"Oi, Kou Prince, you got some problems?"_

 _"I need power," I said in the dream. 'That's not what I want.'_

 _"I can make you become a king and overthrow your mother and Kouen. Isn't that what you want, prince?"_

 _"Yes," I said coldly, "That is exactly what I want."_

 _"See, this is the path you will take." My shadow said to me. "What do you really want?"_

 _"Not to go down that path." I said, tightening my fists._

 _"It's too late. Your fate's already been made for you. You can't change it." He said, shifting to a scene of a nervous soldier in front of me, who had been stabbed by me._

 _"This is what happens when you disobey your king," I said coldly._

 _I saw myself fighting Alibaba._

 _"Lord Alibaba, prepare to die." I said, then Alibaba fell, a mere corpse._

 _Aladdin cried over him. "How could you do such a thing, Hakuryuu? How could you, how could you?"_

 _I saw Kougyoku and Kouha fighting against me, my own cousins._

 _"No, this isn't what I want, this isn't what I want at all."_

 _Morgiana fell before me, then Aladdin...then Hakuei._

 _"No, that's not what I want! I'm not like that! I'm not like that!"_

"Hakuryuu? Snap out of it!" Alibaba cried, shaking me.

I stared at him.

"You told us...about your dream. You kill me in that dream? That's not possible." Alibaba said.

"What if it...comes to pass?" I muttered, shaking.

"I think you worry too much," Morgiana said, "Nothing bad will happen to you."

The next day, we set out on our voyage. I knew what would happen. We would meet Olba and the pirates, and Aum Madaura. Was I going to be able to kill her?

I felt my heart pounding. I didn't know what I could do.

'Stop being so unsure of yourself. Otherwise, you're not fit to wield me.' Zagan said from in my head.

"Of course I am," I muttered.

I still couldn't help but envision a part of me as that dark, icy self I saw. Looking in the mirror now, I swore I saw my blue eyes look icy grey for a moment. And it terrified me.


	6. Chapter 6 I am Hakuryuu Ren, dark prince

A/N:Time for the next chapter. I hope it is to your liking.

Oh, the pairings are Alimor, potential Hakumor, Alikou (either alikou or alimor) and most likely, HakuKou because I really like that pairing and they're only step siblings so it could work. I really like the protectiveness Hakuryuu has of Kougyoku here and if he doesn't wind up with Morgiana, he might wind up with Kougyoku, or Alibaba might. GAH! So frustrating. Anyway, I've gotta be stuck driving to an airport for five hours tomorrow. Talk about borrrrrinnnggg. No internet access. Worse, I have to go to bed early because of stupid college starting tomorrow. Hopefully, it'll be easy. I'm scared that my classmates won't like me.

I'm so scared.

But like Hakuryuu, I'm starting something new regardless.

* * *

Stage 6 Um Madaura and the start of darkness

It was hard to come to terms with the fact that everything was changing so fast. I was not used to this at all. What was I supposed to do about everything?

I found it hard to be optimistic-like Alibaba and the others-while the plot unfolded. I was too lost in my own thoughts, in my own mind.

This is the turning point, literally. There's no going back.

I either fall into depravity, or else I somehow find a way to avoid it, which seems very unlikely under the current circumstances, and stay a good guy, while pretending to like Sindria and be a tool to Sinbad, or a tool to Judar.

Either way, I'm still a tool to someone. I have no free will of my own.

Why, why did fate have to reincarnate me as Hakuryuu?

I fear I may never understand. Why was one such as I given such a cruel fate and then expected to just deal with it-just smile and laugh it all off?

I frowned as I sat in my room aboard the ship, pondering my choices, while Alibaba, Aladdin, and Morgiana were fighting over something stupid again.

I was in a no-win situation.

My mother was an evil witch who would destroy the world if someone didn't stop her. But if I killed her, I would fall into depravity, just like in canon and destroy everything I had now. Um Madaura was a horrible person, but if I killed her, it was pretty much zero hour for me. No matter what way I turned, the path seemed to lead only to darkness and nothing else.

I could choose to be Sinbad's willing pawn, and give up my life for his country, allow him to control my mind the same way he was controlling my cousin-that's it, there's the odd reversal, the odd change of fate my existence here seemed to have.

* * *

"Haku-chan, I'm scared."

She was here. My cousin was here with me.

Normally, Kougyoku wouldn't have come along with us. She would have gone back to the homeland with Ka Koubun, who had been quite vehement on us not taking her. But I managed to get through to him.

I didn't want Kougyoku anywhere near that disgusting shithead of a human being. Sinbad didn't deserve to be near her, he didn't deserve to be her love interest. If anything, she was safer here with Alibaba, Morgiana, Aladdin and myself.

Even if Alibaba had feelings for Morgiana, I could see that Kougyoku was drawn to him. She always looked at him and spoke about him often to me.

Why do things have to be a complicated love triangle, too?

I found that I was...attracted to Morgiana. But I knew her heart was only for Alibaba and Alibaba alone, which caused both Kougyoku and I significant pain.

"...Haku-chan, I'm glad I came along with you. But why couldn't I stay with Sinbad-"

"Do not even speak that man's name. He has done something awful to you." I say, holding her hand tightly and squeezing it.

She blushed. "Haku-chan, you know. _..I've...recently I've...I think I like you..."_

I flushed considerably. What was I supposed to say? We were cousins, step siblings for that matter. But this didn't feel that bad.

At that second, the door to our compartment slid open and Alibaba peered in, "Hey, Hakuryuu, I wanted to say-ah, Kougyoku? What are you doing here?"

"I brought her here because she will be very valuable. She commands water, after all." I said.

Kougyoku smiled and eagerly raced over to greet him. Her smile faltered as she took in Aladdin, who glared at her, remembering her killing Ugo, and Morgiana, who pouted, noticing the princess's attraction to Alibaba and not liking it one bit.

"You're Morgiana-san, right? Haku-chan likes you a lot..."

My face flushed. AGH! Why does being a boy make love so difficult?

"N-No, Lady Morgiana, she's lying!" I cried.

"You do make a cute pairing, you know. HakuMor, perhaps? Ooh, I know. You and Kougyoku...I saw it, you two are in love, I knew it!" Alibaba chanted.

Kougyoku and I flushed.

"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT, ALIBABA-CHAN. YOU KNOW I LOVE SINBAD-SAMA ONLY!" She cried, whipping out her sword at him.

Alibaba stepped backwards. "Whoa, whoa! Stop! I came to ask you guys if you just wanted to hang out on deck, that's all! I don't want any love triangles or anything." He said, not noticing Kougyoku's hurt look upon seeing him take Morgiana's hand and walk off, smiling at us.

"He likes her, doesn't he?" She muttered.

"I believe so," I mumbled.

She smiled at me and shook my hand.

"I like you a lot, Haku-chan!" She declared.

"I see..." I mumbled.

She pulled out my jaw.

"Stop thinking too much, Haku-chan, it hurts you! You've been quiet way too much!" She scolded.

"...You're right," I mumbled, smiling a little. Maybe I should lighten up a little.

Perhaps I was being paranoid. Pirates certainly wouldn't attack now.

I went with Kougyoku up to the deck, where Alibaba, Aladdin and Morgiana were, when suddenly projectiles were thrown at us. Another ship!

It had to be them.

Olba and the pirates, they were here.

"Kougyoku!" I cried.

"Are they-"

"Pirates, yes," I assured her, whipping out my polearm.

She whipped out her hairpin. "Spirit of Sorrow and Isolation, I call upon you and your household members, turn me into a great demon of water...VINEA!"

Instantly a flash of light surrounded my cousin and her blue-haired Djinn Equip form appeared as she floated in the air, stopping the pirates.

"Wow, she's really pretty! Maybe we should capture her, too!"

"You guys...you're pirates, aren't you?" Alibaba cried, whipping out his sword, but looking a little edgy at the sight of Kougyoku and her sword.

"...That's right! You're holding him hostage!" He said, pointing at Aladdin, as he focused his rukh and fired bubbles at Aladdin.

"Summon a giant tidal wave that'll wreck the earth...VAINEL GANEZZA!"

The next second, a giant tidal wave was headed straight for Olba and his pirates, who panicked.

"Run! Our enemies are too powerful!"

But at that moment, they were washed overboard.

However, Aladdin slipped and fell in.

"Aladdin!" Alibaba cried.

"Kougyoku!" I cried.

"Aladdin-chan!" Kougyoku cried, also noticing him in distress. However, she didn't get too far before swords were pointed at Morgiana, her and myself.

"Withdraw your metal vessels. Or else we'll kill him." Olba said, pointing a spear at me.

"...You're just a child." Alibaba cried. "You can't use weapons."

"Shut up! You know nothing!" Olba cried, as suddenly more bubbles surrounded us, and one of them hit Kougyoku, knocking her to the ship's floor.

"Kougyoku!" Alibaba cried, rushing to her side.

Olba took that as his cue and fled with Aladdin.

"I'm fine! Damn you, cowards! Come back and fight like a warrior! Are you _that afraid o_ f a woman?" Kougyoku cried, waving her sword in their direction.

"It'll be all right." Morgiana said. "We can find out where they are. You command water, right, Kougyoku-san?"

Her face brightened. "Yes, yes I can! I can help you all! Right, Haku-chan! But, how do we find where they took Aladdin-chan?"

"I'm already on that," I said, pointing to pieces of earth that were near my feet. "Zagan can trace them no matter where they are."

When we got to the hideout, Alibaba cringed at all the monster, but he, Morgiana, Kougyoku and myself jumped down.

"What a mistake it is for you to build a hideout out of water." Kougyoku laughed, waving her sword around, flooding the holes with water, as the pirate kids screamed.

* * *

"Crazy lady!" They cried.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?" She boomed.

"Remind me not to anger her." Alibaba whined. "How can I use my flames in a place like this?"

"Don't," I said, "We'll have to fight them by our fists, and kill them."

"They're only children!" Morgiana cried.

"... _They're being controlled."_ I said, pointedly.

Kougyoku, Morgiana, Alibaba and I ran down the tunnel, all four of us extremely concerned about Aladdin's whereabouts.

"Good thing you came with us, Kou! You really saved us!" Alibaba cried.

She smiled. "I always want to help my friends...and my cousin." She muttered.

"You do like her, don't you, Hakuryuu-san?" Morgiana said.

I blushed. "Now's not the time to mention it." I said, as a child pointed a knife at me.

"No, you don't!" Morgiana cried, aiming her kick at the child, knocking the weapon out of his hands.

"No, don't...don't hurt us. Don't hurt Mother...Mother helps us."

"Who is Mother?" Kougyoku asked, "What's wrong with them...?"

"...They're being controlled, manipulated like puppets." I muttered, my fists tightening in rage. Why did everyone in Magi have to suffer?

The children started crying at our feet.

"This isn't fair! Mama pays attention to us! Mama loves us!" One wailed.

"...Mama, huh?" Kougyoku whispered.

"Kougyoku," I said, sharply.

"Let's go!" Alibaba cried, shaking off the children.

One charged at me with another blade.

I knocked it out of his hands and pressed my polearm to his throat. I don't know why I did it, but suddenly my morals changed in that second.

"Hakuryuu-san, don't!" Morgiana cried.

"What do you think you're doing, Hakuryuu?" Alibaba cried.

"...Shut up, Lord Alibaba. They're only being controlled. Isn't it better to put them out of their misery?"

We were trapped on all sides by the children. Kougyoku had reverted to her regular form.

* * *

"My, my, seems to me like my children have brought more guests to join this sweet little boy. Four teenagers, hmm? Two young girls in need of a mother."

"...Why would I want an ugly hag like you?" Kougyoku cried, "Using children like this! It's low!"

"What are you talking about?" Um Madaura said, laughing. "...I'm giving these children a purpose, a home. Don't you all miss your mothers? Look at me, don't you also need a mother? You don't need weapons now."

"Like we'd fall for that!" Alibaba cried, swinging his weapon. But they all stopped in their tracks.

"No, you're dead...Mother," Alibaba whispered.

"Lord Alibaba!" I cried, "It's a mere trick, snap out of it! Lady Morgiana!"

"Mother...I want my mother," Morgiana whimpered.

"Kougyoku, stop them! Kougyoku...?" I said.

She, too, had frozen in her tracks. "...Mother...mother...I want my mother."

She approached Um Madaura, a frozen look in her eyes.

"Kougyoku!" I cried.

"That's right, children, come to your mother. Why do you resist me, young one? You, too, miss your mother?"

 _I saw my old mother, telling me to study more. Telling me I needed to get good grades._

 _"Now, Louisa, you can't just fail like that. You need to be prepared for your education. Don't let fear get the better of you."_

 _"But no one will take me seriously." I moaned. "What if everyone hates me?"_

 _"You have to be prepared for that." She said, holding me close as I sobbed. "...People are fickle, fickle beings. You must be prepared for heartache. But don't you let yourself become a horrible person."_

Then, a vision of Gyokuen appeared...her twisted smiles, her lying face.

No, Gyokuen wasn't my mother. _This woman wasn't my mother._

It was all a deceitful lie, a false vision.

I snapped out of it. "Lord Aladdin, snap out of it!"

"Hakuryuu-kun, you're not affected, too?" He said questioningly.

"We have to save Lord Alibaba, Lady Morgiana and Kougyoku!" I cried.

"Solomon's wisdom!" Aladdin cried, as a flash of light overtook Morgiana and Alibaba, snapping them out of their hypnotic trances.

"What is this? How can children resist the call of their mother?" She cried.

"Kougyoku, snap out of it." I said, touching my cousin.

She slapped my hand away.

"Kougyoku?"

She lifted her head to look at me. Her eyes were glazed over.

 _"...Mother...I must protect Mother. Stay out of my way."_

"Good girl." Um Madaura said, as my cousin stepped towards her.

Damned bitch, leading her on like that. First, Sinbad, now her?

'Everyone is trying to steal your loved ones away from you. Only the darkness will save them.'

I shook my head. "Kougyoku, it's me...your cousin..."

Only to be stopped as spears of ice came near me, pinning me to the wall.

"Vainel Ganezza!" She cried, summoning a huge torrent of water. "Leave me alone! I'm meant to be with my mother!"

"What happened to Kougyoku?" Alibaba cried.

"She's been brainwashed by her!" Aladdin cried. "We've got to save her!"

"Kougyoku!" Alibaba cried, smacking his sword against hers. "Think of your friends! We don't want to fight you!"

"Shut up! How dare you tell me to ditch my own mother!" She screeched, knocking Alibaba backwards with a wall of water.

"Kougyoku-san, stop!" Morgiana cried, attempting to kick her, but Kougyoku was damned fast in her Djinn Equip.

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Alibaba cried. "She's too powerful!"

"Look, the powers of Mother can even control Djinns. She's perfect to add to my collection of children. Boy, there's nothing you can do, all your friends will be adopted by me. You'll become my beloved children. You'll be forever loved. What's wrong with that?"

 _Forget about my murder? Forget about my mother...it all sounded so inviting. So amazing._

My fists tightened.

"LEAVE MY COUSIN OUT OF YOUR LIES!" I roared, charging at her, but Kougyoku blocked my path, her sword slashing at my shoulder.

"Hakuryuu!" Alibaba cried.

"Die." Kougyoku said simply.

This wasn't the Kougyoku I knew, nor the Kougyoku I loved.

That's right...I loved her. I did.

I closed my eyes. "I'm really sorry, Kougyoku. Spirit of Loyalty and Purity, I command you and your members, grant me great power! _Awaken, Zagan!"_

In a flash, I had power. Power...? So this is what having power feels like.

It felt good, enlightening.

No, don't think that way.

"...Kougyoku, I'm afraid I must stop you!" I said calmly, aiming my sword at her, as I did so, I cut a piece of her red hair off, which fell to the ground.

Her red eyes faded, before her eyes became violet again. "H-Haku-chan? What am I doing?" She said, looking from me to my shoulder. " _Is that you, Hakuryuu?_ You look so...so scary." She whimpered.

"I'm fine." I said tersely, watching as she powered out of her Djinn Equip before Aladdin, Morgiana and Alibaba restrained all of the children, while I walked toward Um Madaura.

"...Don't you accept your mother?" She whispered.

"Um Madaura, you have toyed with the minds of children. Do you really believe that's something that can be condoned?" I said, pointing my weapon at her.

"Hakuryuu, bring her here! Kougyoku'll trap them all in her water." Alibaba said.

I looked from him to Um Madaura, then forced her to walk over to my friends, my spear behind her.

Olba and the other kids cried the whole way on the trip back to the village.

"...Stop it." I said, glaring at them.

"They're just children," Kougyoku whispered. "You really scared me back there."

I smiled grimly. "...It is all right."

As the children were rounded up, they continued crying as their beloved mother was separated from them.

"...Please, I need those little brats. Children, listen to your mother. Don't you all care?" She said, looking from Kougyoku to Alibaba, who glared at her.

"Silence. People like you anger me." Kougyoku said coldly.

"What about you...little boy? You need a mother, right? You couldn't hurt me if you tried, you need a mother, right? Just call me mother..."

I stared at her.

"Right, boy? You're my son and will spare me, right? Become mine."

An image of Gyokuen played in my mind.

I shook suddenly. I came near her.

"That's a good boy. You can always trust Mommy, right?"

I paused. "...You piss me off." I said, then it was as though everything froze. I raised my blade and...Olba screamed out loud.

"MOTHER!"

Um Madaura's arm fell off, blood spurting out of it. She cried out in pain.

"That's the pain you've made them feel. Feel the pain, Um Madaura." I said coldly, slicing her other arm.

"Hakuryuu, stop! That's enough!" Alibaba screamed. "What's with you?"

"Shut up, Alibaba." I said darkly.

"Good boy...obey your mother...no matter what, I can replace your mother. You love me, don't you? Come now, you should obey me, right? Tell me I'm your mother..." She wheedled.

"Hakuryuu-san!" Morgiana cried.

I paused, stared at her.

"Good boy..." She said.

"...To hell with you." I said, "You are subhuman scum."

"Boy, you are my precious son! I will always love you, no matter what!"

"Mother, join him! She's right! Join her!" Olba cried. The other children cried out as well.

"Don't listen to them, Hakuryuu!" Alibaba cried, "They're just brainwashed!"

But I couldn't hear anything. I was numb. I don't really know why...but I felt nothing but...sudden...fury.

It was a cold, bitter fury. How dare...how dare this woman claim to be a mother to these children and use them. She was just like Jacques...using people. Such unforgivable people...

" _Goodbye, Um Madaura._ " I said, and brought my sword down.

A stream of blood sprayed on the ground, as her corpse slid to the ground, lifeless, blood pouring out from her.

" ** _MOTHER!" Olba screamed. "How dare you!"_**

Um Madaura's head lay at my feet, still uncomprehending of her fate.

I stared at the blood coating my sword, then I suddenly realized what I'd just done.

Why? Why had I done that?

"I HATE YOU! I'LL KILL YOU!" Olba cried.

As Olba and the others were led away, I stared at the corpse, my sword clattered out of my hands. I stood there, shell-shocked, unable to let out a sound. My mouth moved, but no words came out.

 _Why?_

Why had I killed someone?

"... _HAKURYUU, WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR? YOU CAN'T JUST KILL SOMEONE_!" Alibaba cried, shaking me.

I stared at my hands, then at the blood on them. I had done this...I had killed her.

'She deserved it. She hurt those children, hurt your friends...subhuman scum like her deserve to die.'

"Hakuryuu, are you even listening?" Alibaba cried, as he grabbed me and turned me around to face him.

I opened my mouth to speak. "...I...don't know..." I muttered, my eyes wide. I was catatonic.

"HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW, YOU JUST KILLED SOMEONE, DAMMIT! WEREN'T YOU KILLED IN YOUR OTHER LIFE? **YOU, OF ALL PEOPLE,** SHOULD KNOW NOT TO-"

"Shut up." I hissed. "...I can't think straight. I lost myself..."

He glared at me, then started crying.

"You shouldn't shed tears over a horrible person like that. Someone like her...does not belong in this world, Lord Alibaba. I don't know...what came over me, but I do not regret it-"

SMACK!

I held my stinging cheek, staring at Kougyoku, who was glaring at me, tears running down her face.

"Haku-chan, how could you...? How could you kill her? You're like Judar-chan...how could you? My life isn't so important that you kill someone!"

She buried her head in my chest, sobbing hysterically.

I stared at her, blankly. "...Why? Why are you so angry, Kougyoku? She tried to hurt us, kill all of us! Your friend, Alibaba, he betrayed you so many times!"

"Don't you talk about Kassim like that! You don't know anything!" He screamed.

Morgiana and Aladdin were silent.

"...Leave me alone." I said, grabbing my blade, gently shoving Kougyoku aside and ran onto the ship, ignoring their concerned cries and raced into my chamber, letting the tears flow.

What had I done?

Why had I stolen a human life away from this world?

 _I didn't want to do evil. I had just become a horrible human being._

It was all my fault. It was all my fault.

"You did what was right, Hakuryuu-kun. Human lives are irrelevant." Zagan whispered.

I lifted my face up, studying my reflection in the mirror.

I didn't see pure-hearted, kind Louisa anymore, a cheery brown-haired girl with blue eyes who never stopped smiling. The girl who loved kittens, the girl who loved her friends, who loved reading books, who valued life, and loyalty...was gone.

All I saw...staring back at me was a teenage boy, with an ugly red scar trailing from his forehead, nearly touching his lower cheek, his bottom lip trembling. His black hair hung in his face, loose and unnatural, and his blue eyes were like ice, ice with water pouring down his cheeks, which were now red...red from the blood on my hands.

Red teardrops fell on the ground.

Who was this person before me?

This boy, with odd, weird clothing, a cold steel blade, a wooden arm...a sobbing, confused, broken boy...this wasn't Louisa Beauchene.

It was then that it dawned on me, as I stood there, weeping uncontrollably, my eyes puffy.

 _Louisa Beauchene_ was gone. I couldn't see her anymore.

I couldn't see me anymore.

All I saw was...was me, Hakuryuu Ren, a prince who was falling into depravity. The eyes of a murderer, my hands soaked in blood. I couldn't deny it any longer. I was no longer the pure-hearted, kind female I had been in the past. What would my parents have said, what would Hakuyuu and Hakuren have thought? Look at their brother now.

What would Hakuei say?

'Hakuryuu, you murderer! Get away from me!'

I was now a male, a warrior...a warrior of darkness. I couldn't deny it any longer.

I raised my head up, glaring at my reflection in the mirror. I wiped the tears from my eyes.

"...Louisa is gone," I whispered. "Gone, gone, gone."

"I am..." I mumbled, grabbing my bloodstained blade.

The black-haired, blue-eyed boy with the scar gazed back at me in the mirror.

".. _.I am Hakuryuu Ren...prince of the Kou Empire...and...and someone...determined to end this cruel fate." I muttered. "No matter the cost, I will...change this world...t **his demented world, this demented destiny-"**_

"Hakuryuu-kun!" Kougyoku cried, rushing to my side. She stared at me, shaking me. "I know you didn't mean to do it. Alibaba-chan was acting odd. He kept saying you should know better. Does this have to do with your brothers?"

"Kougyoku," I whispered, staring at her. "...I will never let any harm come to you. You see, I lived another life before this one. It's hard to explain. In that past life, which is long gone, I was...a female, who lived a good life. But I was...betrayed, and murdered."

"How awful," Kougyoku muttered, "But you're-"

"I'm a man now. I can't deny that anymore, Kougyoku. Reincarnation changes you. And I...I know everything that's going to happen in the future..."

"That's impossible. You've gone mad," She whimpered, staring at me. "Please, don't leave my side."

"I won't," I whispered, holding her close, but not before wiping my hands on a tissue she handed me. "...Forgive me for killing her. I'm afraid that my destiny is not a kind one. Will you help me...will you help me free you from Sinbad?"

"Free me, what are you talking about?"

"Sinbad is controlling you! He is taking control of your mind without you knowing!" I cried.

She flinched. "...Don't lie!"

"Hakuryuu...?" Alibaba, Aladdin and Morgiana said, all in the doorway.

"...You all must know this. I will tell you...the other thing I've been holding back. In my other life...I knew all about your adventures, your destinies."

"How is that? You're psychic?" Alibaba said. "Hakuryuu, you seem...weird. More distant. Are you...?"

"Yes, I'm afraid I'm going to fall, very soon. I don't want to fall. I'm not a murderer, I'm not..." I moaned, as tears fell out of my eyes again. "...But," I sniffled again, "You see, in my world, there were books written...comics, if you will, called...manga. I read lots of them. Your world-er, our world...was written out...by an author. Everything that is real here was...in my world, mere fiction, called Magi. You, Kougyoku, Aladdin, Morgiana, Alibaba...and myself. I read everything that's going to happen."

"You're lying-" Alibaba said, "I'm not-"

"You are real!" I cried. "...I know that now. I've been...pretending this life is a lie. But I cannot...I cannot do that again. In my destiny, I'm supposed to fall...and do horrible things. I don't want to fall..."

I put my head in my hands.

Why was everything falling apart?

 _All I wanted was to help._

 _And now I'd become a monster._

"Hakuryuu-chan, I forgive you. You had your reasons to hide those secrets. But I love you, no matter what. You're my cousin."

"But, but I-I'm going to hurt all of you! You, Lady Morgiana! You, Aladdin! And you, Lord Alibaba...I...I-"

"What happens to me?" He asked seriously.

"I'm going to kill you..."

"You wouldn't do that, Hakuryuu! Your tears are genuine! You regret what you've done!"

"...No, she deserved to die. But...but..." I sobbed.

"...Hakuryuu-kun, fate can change. It might not be the way you read it." Aladdin said. "You're not a mere spectator, you can fight your destiny. It's not set in stone..."

"I love you, Hakuryuu-chan." Kougyoku said, hugging me and then she...she kissed me.

"I...I...Kougyoku..." I mumbled.

She flicked my forehead, sending me flying.

"YOU IDIOT! SHE SHOULD'VE GONE TO PRISON AND YOU SCARED ME TO DEATH WITH YOUR COOL FACADE! YOU'RE NOT THAT COOL AND COLD PERSON, YOU'RE JUST MY CRYBABY COUSIN WHO WHINES TOO MUCH!" She said.

"Kougyoku-san, calm down." Morgiana said.

"Shut up, you...you stealer of Alibaba-chan's affections!"

"What...?" Morgiana muttered.

"Shut up, murderer!" Aladdin cried.

"Shut up, perverted brat!" Kougyoku cried. "And you, Alibaba-chan, you should've stopped him, you stupid, stupid idiot! You're all idiots, idiots...idiots!" She broke down in sobs.

"H-Hey...Kou..." Alibaba muttered as I got back up.

"Y-You didn't...did you...?" I mumbled.

"I heard all about your little theatrical play in Zagan's dungeon. I had to...emphasize my point." She said.

"That was amazing!" Aladdin cried. "Can I suck on your-"

"Do it and you die." Kougyoku hissed.

"I hate you!" Aladdin cried.

"I hate you too, little brat!" She hissed.

"Stop it, Kou!" Alibaba cried. "We might've made some mistakes...but knowing is half the power, right Hakuryuu? It doesn't matter what you read or who you used to be...you can change your destiny!"

I nodded, sniffling.

But I knew it.

I was already headed for depravity.

I could not control it.

I had to keep her out of the darkness, by whatever means possible. All of them-Kougyoku, Nee-san, and everyone else.

 _It's all right if I fall._

 _It's all right._

 _It's destiny._


	7. Chapter 7 A light in the darkness?

A/N:I came up with a hilarious omake on this story. I hope you all enjoy it. I think I'll work on that first, and then _feature the actual story at the beginning_ (the omake will be quite long, but at the bottom of the chapter itself. Featuring trolling Hakuryuu/Louisa humming the Star Wars Imperial March when Gyokuen shows up, period troubles with Hakuei, and why Hakuei should never, ever be allowed to cook, ever again, period.

I've got Hakukou going for goodness' sake. It's an interesting pairing. I think Alibaba belongs to Morgiana. I figured Hakuryuu can keep Kougyoku out of the hands of Sinbad, and it should be fun to see Judar's reaction to Sinbad using Kougyoku.

Today's my half-birthday, everyone! I'm 21 and a half! :D

* * *

Stage 7 A light in the darkness?

* * *

After I had beheaded Um Madaura, I noticed that Alibaba, Aladdin and Morgiana found it quite troubling to be around me, and distanced themselves from me. While I appreciated their silence, at the same time it troubled me.

Why had it gone so wrong? Why had I done what I didn't want to do? Why had I killed Um Madaura? I had wanted to change fate, but instead I had played into the hands of fate like a puppet.

That's right, I was nothing more than an empty puppet, used to fulfill a role. From the second I had become Hakuryuu Ren, I was just going to play a part...and then...would I die? The thought of the power I'd gotten from Zagan drifted through my mind. It had been...amazing to have such power, to be honest.

Perhaps it's just part of being a male now, but having _power_...having something tangible...it's amazing. I hate the idea of feeling weak.

Above all that, it was cruel of fate to reincarnate me into a world where my siblings would be taken from me.

What would they have done if they were here?

Hakuyuu and Hakuren?

They didn't die so I could become a murderer.

'Yes, but at the same time they wanted you to avenge their deaths,' A voice whispered in my mind.

I shook my head.

"I'm thinking too much," I mumbled.

Either I fall into depravity and have Sinbad declare me an enemy and him do something horrible to my cousin, or else my mother wins and destroys the world.

My options would be limited.

I thought over it for a few moments. Would Sinbad actually be capable of ordering Kougyoku to kill her family?

I had to stop and say, yes, yes he would. Anything for his country. Even though Sinbad was morally dubious at best, an utter villain at worst, the knowledge of knowing that he would use his country as an excuse for almost anything, pissed me off beyond measure.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror. The scarred boy with blue eyes gazed back.

 _I suppose that's why I was so angry on the way back. Knowing that my fate was set in stone and that I wasn't supposed to try and achieve anything. Anything I did would send me down the wrong path and everyone was trying to use me for something._

Not to mention everyone else tried to get over the fact that kind, gentle Hakuryuu had cut off someone's head. Kougyoku still hung around me, but the o

* * *

thers were hesitant, giving me my time alone, but it was more like they were afraid of me.

I hung my head low and sighed. "I'm Hakuryuu now, I should be more used to this sort of thing. Why does it still bother me?"

* * *

A knock on the door.

"Hakuryuu," Alibaba said from outside my compartment, "Can I talk to you?"

"Go away," I said.

He opened the door and stared in at me, clearly concerned,"Come on, Hakuryuu, you really need someone to talk to."

"I do not need anyone to talk to." I said, sighing at his stupidity. I really did not need anyone feeling bad for me-their kind words. Part of me had already fallen into darkness.

It was quite obvious. I was going to confess the truth anyway, even though it wouldn't solve anything.

"Hakuryuu!" He said, coming in and shaking me. Still, I did not respond for a few moments.

"Why do you trust someone like me, when I did something despicable?" I said.

"Hakuryuu, I know you did it for a reason." Alibaba said, being the naive fool he always is.

I flinched for a second. Could I honestly picture myself killing Alibaba? No, no I couldn't. I couldn't think like that.

"Hakuryuu, is something wrong?" He said, waving his hand in front of my face.

"N-Nothing," I said, "It's just, you know...kind of weird that you would say things like that. Because I'm feeling better, but at the same time kind of worse. I overheard Sinbad..."

"What about Sinbad?" Alibaba said.

"He's been plotting things," I said, "Saying I should be loyal to his country, and if not he'll-" I couldn't finish, the whole prospect of it was too disturbing to think of.

"You don't have to be, you're part of the Kou Empire, Hakuryuu," Alibaba said, "I think you should get a choice in these kinds of things."

"I'm afraid you don't really see the bigger picture," I muttered.

"I'm afraid you're moving out of our grasp, Hakuryuu. I don't care about your past, I don't care about who you used to be! All I care about is the you now."

"You're...foolish," I mumbled.

"I'm well-aware of that. Morgiana and Aladdin always tease me about that."

Why did he always move me to tears by his kindness? I never understood why.

I felt tears come out of my eyes again.

"Hakuryuu, you're crying again." Alibaba said, poking me, "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," I snapped.

"But, really, you've been acting weird."

He flicked my forehead.

I rubbed my forehead and scowled. "Do you always have to act like that, Lord Alibaba?"

"Stop calling me Lord, just call me Alibaba." He said.

"Fine, Alibaba."

"That's better!" He cried.

Then before I knew it, he stretched my jaw out.

"Alibaba-chan, is it working?" Kougyoku said, but the second she saw me, she smiled.

"I knew it, Haku-kun's smiling again!"

"Looks like your plan worked, Kougyoku!" Alibaba cried, as the two of them fist bumped each other.

"The two of you were conspiring against me?" I muttered, rubbing my jaw. "That's unforgivable."

"Haku-kun?" She asked, looking at me as though I'd done something wrong before she burst out laughing. "I'm so glad. I'm so glad that you're starting to smile again and act more human."

"What are you talking about?" I said, "I am human."

"Yeah, of course no matter what you do, we'll be there for you."

I laughed. "You're so stupid."

"Seriously, though, Hakuryuu," Alibaba said, "If you fall, I'll be there to stop you!" He cried.

I stared at him. "I don't know what to do..."

"I don't necessarily believe you're doomed to something just because of fate. I know you can change it, Hakuryuu! Back in Zagan's dungeon, you showed me you were a brave guy!"

"It was you who did most of the work," I said.

"Who was it who saved me when I fell into darkness? I cut off your arm, you know."

I flinched, not wanting to remember the pain-or the memory.

"I can help you, okay?" Alibaba said.

I sighed. "Your kind nature baffles me, Alibaba. I don't quite understand it and I don't think I ever will." I mumbled.

Suddenly, a red blur tackled me from behind and sent me flying off my bed and into the wall.

It was...Morgiana.

"Hakuryuu-san, please calm down." She said.

"I'm normal..." I mumbled, "Besides you kicking me into the wall..."

"You sure?" She asked.

Annoyed, I sighed. "Yes..."

I dreaded what would happen next. I'd have to go back to the Kou Empire and face my mother.

The rest of the voyage passed by smoothly.

"How come we have to leave each other so soon?" Alibaba cried.

"I've got to go back home." I said.

"So do I," Kougyoku said, "En-nii needs to see us."

"I need to discuss some things with...well, members of my family." I said. The thought of considering Gyokuen family made the hackles on the back of my neck rise.

"Hakuryuu!" Alibaba said.

I turned to look at him. "Yes?"

"During the time that we're apart from each other, we're still friends, aren't we?"

"Y-Yes," I said, a little startled. Where was this coming from?

"Please, whatever it is you have to do that's so pressing...don't let yourself fall into darkness. That's not like you." He pleaded.

"I will...try my best," I said, nodding. "That is all I can do."

"Great, then we're all friends, right!" He cried, as he lined the five of us up and we all bumped fists together, though Aladdin glared at Kougyoku.

"Little brat..." Kougyoku muttered.

"Good, I'm glad to see you're feeling better," He said.

"Alibaba-chan, I wish I could go with you," Kougyoku said.

The road to the Kou Empire was uneventful. I spent most of the time spacing out while Kou tried to make conversation with me. I talked for a while, but rested most of the time, too worn out from my time in Zagan and the pirates.

But one time, she wasn't acting like herself.

"Kougyoku?" I asked.

Suddenly a smirk played out on her face, one that did not suit the kind, gentle girl I knew.

"Hello there, Hakuryuu-kun."

"Sinbad," I muttered, "How long have you been there?"

"Oh, I showed up just now. I didn't really find out anything about what happened to you guys in Zagan, so I was just curious." Sinbad said casually.

"That is none of your business, Lord Sinbad," I said icily.

"I'm afraid it is none of my business, as you are loyal to Sindria."

"I'm not loyal to Sindria, especially with you mind-controlling my cousin." I snapped.

"Hakuryuu-kun, you really need to stop being so stubborn."

"Don't you think it's a bit perverse possessing the body of a teenage girl?" I pointed out.

If Sinbad could shoot me a death glare while being in Kougyoku's body, that would be it.

"Haku-kun," He said.

"Only Kougyoku can call me that," I snapped.

"Oh well, let it be known that I am watching you, Hakuryuu-kun," He said, "If you make any attempts against Sindria-"

"Do not fear," I said coolly. "I have no intentions of working against Sindria."

His smile grew.

"My loyalty is to the Kou Empire and my friends, not to you, Sinbad-san." I said, glaring at him.

"Here I thought you were more like me, Hakuryuu-kun. So disappointing."

Suddenly, Kougyoku returned to herself.

"Kougyoku," I said. She looked dazed.

"Did he...?" She began.

"Yes, he took over your body again. Damn him!"

Couldn't life be normal for once?

Once we returned to Kou, naturally we received the Your Highness crap.

"His Highness Prince Hakuryuu Ren and Her Highness Princess Kougyoku Ren have returned!" A guard cried.

Instantly, I saw him, Kouen Ren, headed my way with his army behind him.

He was a quiet, stoic man. I could not read him, I couldn't tell if he cared about me or was using me, too.

"En-Nii!" Kougyoku cried.

"Hakuryuu," He greeted, "It has been a while."

"Indeed, it has," I said coldly.

"What's this I hear about you trying to date my sister?"

Kougyoku flushed.

"As it turned out, Sinbad was using her for some rather nefarious purposes." I informed.

"Sinbad?" Kouen asked.

"Yes," I said, but that talk was cut off when Kouha approached.

"Hey, if it isn't the Chibi Prince! He's gotten taller!"

"Shut up, Kouha!" I said, but there was an amused smirk on my face.

"Kouha-nii!" Kougyoku cried.

"You're looking well, Kougyoku. Is it true that you two are an item?"

Koumei came behind him, yawning. "Good to see everyone here."

"All except-" I mumbled, only to be tackled by a black blur in a hug.

"Hakuryuu! How could you not tell me where you were going?"

Oh, it was Hakuei.

"Nee-san, please get off me." I said, she was quite heavy.

"Oh, and Kougyoku," She said.

Kou flushed. She didn't quite know how to react around people like Hakuei.

"What's this I hear about you cutting someone's head off, Hakuryuu?" Hakuei demanded.

"I did it to protect my friends." I said.

"You were wise to do such a thing," Kouen said, "The woman was a traitor. He executed a criminal."

"Still, my little brother shouldn't have to stain his hands with blood."

"It's all right," I said. 'It's probably what she would want.'

Sure enough, I could feel her dark aura following us.

There she was, the woman I was forced to call Mother.

She was smiling at all of us, but I noticed how she was eying me.

"Hakuryuu," Hakuei said warningly.

I turned to look at her. "Don't say anything." I muttered.

"It's been a long time, Kouen," Gyokuen purred, rubbing up against him.

"Ew," Kouha muttered.

"That's kinda creepy," Kougyoku said.

"In more ways than one," I mumbled.

"Hello there, little Kouha," Gyokuen said, who smiled upon seeing Kouha glare at her.

She turned her nose up all of a sudden. "Oh, I wasn't aware that whores were welcome here," She said, sneering at Kougyoku.

"She is welcome here, as much as anyone else," Kouen said.

I was surprised that he'd actually spoken up in her defense.

"If it isn't Koumei. And my precious children...Hakuei."

She came towards Hakuei, who smiled.

"Hello, Mother, how are you?" She said, smiling wanly.

"I'm fine." She said, "I was wondering how my little Hakuryuu was doing. I heard that he has conquered a dungeon."

"Indeed I have," I said, "Mother."

"What's with the coldness?" She said, "I thought you were my beloved son."

I just ignored her. I swatted her hand aside.

'Please, don't feign affection for me,' I thought in disgust.

Everything happened as in canon. Gyokuen became the empress and Koutoku died. Koutoku was probably killed by Gyokuen, though.

Hakuei was sad during the funeral, but I was lost in my thoughts.

"Mother is evil," I said to Hakuei when we were alone.

"Hakuryuu, not this nonsense again." She said.

"Mother is not...good. She is evil. She wants to destroy the world."

"Hakuryuu, that's not true." She said.

I noticed that Judar was following us, as well as Kougyoku, who looked worried.

"If this is about what Mother said about Kougyoku..." She said.

"She has no empathy for anyone, Sister." I said.

"What about my own little brother who took someone else's life?" She said icily. "This is why I didn't want you going out to the dungeon. I lost my brothers, I don't want to lose you, too."

My fists tightened.

"I understand how you feel, Sister. But she is not my mother. She never will be. The fire...our brothers, she killed them!" I cried, shaking her. The only real mother to me was my mother in my past life.

She slapped me hard in the face. "Hakuryuu, I don't believe you. You're insane," She said.

"Nee-san," I said, staring at her, wide-eyed. Why was this happening?

"Hakuryuu-kun," Kougyoku was there, by my side.

Suddenly a black blur darted behind Kougyoku and grabbed her hair.

"AHHHH!" She screamed.

"Got ya, old hag?"

"Judar-chan, how dare you!" Kougyoku shrieked, wielding her sword at him.

"If it isn't Judar." Hakuei said.

"Yo, Kou Prince! You've gotten a tad grumpier! And tougher, too! I heard you conquered a dungeon with the help of the chibi brat, the loser prince and that tough girl."

"Alibaba-chan's not a loser," Kougyoku said, "We're friends."

"Ah, is that so?" Judar said, "I have a few words to say to ya in private, Hakuryuu."

"Judar-chan," Kougyoku said.

"What's this I hear about Sinbad?" Judar said, causing Kougyoku to wilt.

Hakuei had already left me, probably angry.

"Kougyoku has been mind-controlled by her."

Judar's eyes narrowed. "That stupid king!"

When we were both alone, he turned to me, smiling.

"I've gotta hand it to you, kid, conquering a dungeon was quite impressive. But it's almost like you know what's going to happen next."

"And what if I did?" I said coldly.

"No way you could know, you're not a Magi." Judar said, frowning as he looked me over. "Aha, I see, you're a special case, aren't you? Yer reincarnated, yet you remember things from your past rukh, is that it? Before you ask, kid, I can see. Your rukh has everything in it, like your gender-"

He paused. "Ah, that's funny. I can't seem to read your rukh. But it seems to me that you're falling. Would you like me to help you destroy that witch?"

"She does need to die," I said.

"About what you said, Kougyoku can only be controlled by me!" Judar said, "I'm gonna kill that king!"

Suddenly I was glad Judar was on my side.

"Sinbad," I said coldly, "has been controlling her for a long time now."

"Why did you want to inform me of this?" He said. "That's just yet another reason to kill that king."

He paused.

"Kid, what can you offer me? Are you planning to act like Kougyoku's hero?"

"No," I snapped.

"Then why should I care? What's in it for me?"

"I know that you care about her. Does it really matter to you if she dies?"

"Of course it does," He said, "Join me, kid. You've got your wits about you. Stupid king shouldn't control you." He extended his hand.

I stared at him for a few moments before I accepted, shaking his hand.

"My, my, what's going on here?"

It was her. How much had 'mother' overheard?

"Mother," I said coldly.

"Hello there, Judar."

"Go to hell," Was all Judar said, "This was a private conversation between a Magi and his chosen king, if you don't mind."

"Oh, my, my beloved Hakuryuu can become someone special? I didn't think that was possible." She jeered, "I love you, you know."

I glared at her, and backed away.

"You know I will always love you, Hakuryuu," She said, "Even if you hate me."

"She's really messed up, huh?" Judar remarked. "But hey, kid, you can get your revenge on her, help us get rid of Kouen, he's too boring."

"He's still my sibling," I said, "That could be seen as heresy."

"Oh, and your claim to kill the Empress isn't?" He mocked.

"You have a point," I muttered.

The image of me killing Madaura still stuck in my mind.

I did not want history to repeat itself. Not ever.

But it already had been.

History was already changing as I knew it. What could I do?

"I have one request, Judar," I said.

"What is it, my King?" He said sarcastically.

"I have no loyalty towards Gyokuen Ren, however I have loyalty for Kougyoku Ren and the other siblings, at no time can harm come to them...or to Aladdin and the others. Our objective is to expose Gyokuen and Sinbad and destroy them." I said.

"Ha, still blinded by naivete, are you?" Judar sneered.

"...Hakuryuu-kun?" Kougyoku asked as Judar left. "What are you guys talking about? You'd never hurt En-Nii, would you?"

"No, Kougyoku, I'm fighting...to keep you safe from Sinbad and from her...this is important. I must do this, for both of us." I said.

She looked afraid. "...I'll support you, no matter what," She said.

My heart was pounding fiercely, as suddenly her lips met with mine.

-4 omakes, Hakuryuu Ren's life. First, scary big sisters and periods! Second, why Hakuei cannot cook to save her life! Third, Kougyoku and Morgiana's trip to the beach! Fourth, trolling Hakuei!

Number one: Scary big sisters and periods.

I was a boy now. Apparently.

I paced back and forth, outside the bathroom.

What was Hakuei doing in the bathroom that was taking so long? My little bladder had to go soon. My now seven-year old mind froze at that moment. I had been a girl in my past life, right? So was it possible that...Hakuei-onee-san was...?

Suddenly, the door slammed open to reveal an angry-looking Hakuei.

"Um, Neesan?" I mumbled.

"What is it, Hakuryuu?" She said, but there was an ominous aura around her.

I shuddered. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Hakuryuu. I feel better now after seeing my cute brother's face!" She chirped, patting my head.

I pouted as a response. Then, something caught my foot. Something sticky. I stared at it with wide eyes. It was...a tampon. Oh boy, wasn't that nostalgic?

"Oneesan, are you on your-" I began.

"Nothing!" She cried, turning red as she pulled it off my leg. "Nothing my innocent little brother needs to know about."I flushed. "Isn't it a thing girls go through? I'm a girl, too!"

"Not those dreams again," She said, patting my head.

"You're my adorable little brother, Hakuryuu."

"What are those weird red marks, Neesan?"

"It's called acne. You'll get them when you're older."

"Will I get them, too?"

"You're a boy, you'll go through a different puberty."

"Are you on your period?" I asked.

She flinched. "Who told you that?"

"Judar did! He said it's when girls become...bitchy..."

No sooner did I finish that sentence than I heard snickering behind the corner.

"Come out, Judar." Hakuei said menacingly.

Sure enough, there was the black magi. "You're on your period, huh?" He laughed out loud. "Guess that's what makes you a bitch. Do you know about periods, little Hakuryuu?"

I looked at him with wide eyes.

"Don't you dare corrupt my little brother!" Hakuei cried.

Judar visibly flinched. "Don't you worry. Didn't you know that every woman becomes ten thousand times bitchier on their periods, just to show that they cannot get a guy!"

In that second, Judar was sent flying backwards with a bloody nose.

"You little brat! Stop laughing!" Judar cried at me.

"Neesan, it's funny! He fell over!"

"Why did you tell my little brother about periods?"

"I thought it'd be funny. He needs to know sooner or later, besides he's so girly he could pass for a girl!"

The next thing, Judar was blown to the side by a gust of wind. Hakuei was using her djinn.

"Don't you dare use your djinn!" He cried.

"Well then, admit it. Did you tell him about periods?"

"I...I did!"

"What do you have to say for corrupting an innocent little boy?"

"He's not innocent, look at him!" He said, pointing at me.

I was smiling again.

"He's smiling. IF anything, you're the bad influence."

"Me? IF anything, you're the bad one for punching me, you stupid bi-"

Judar whined and moaned as Hakuei beat him up.

Hakuei smiled, "Since you corrupted my little brother, I think it's time to tell...Mother."

"No, anyone but her!" Judar cried in terror.

The next thing we knew, Gyokuen was there.

"Mother, Judar has tormented Hakuryuu!"

"How lovely-no, Judar-kun, time for your punishment!"

"No, save me!" Judar moaned as he was dragged by the hair by Gyokuen.

I almost felt bad for him.

"Personally, I think it's awesome that my Hakuryuu can learn about women. You won't be a jerk to them, will you?"

I flinched. "No, you're the prettiest girl in the world!"

"What about Kougyoku?"

"Well, she's pretty, but she's related to me!" I said. "Maybe Judar could!"

"Definitely not, I do not want Judar touching him!" She said.

"Hakuryuu, do not tell anyone else I'm on my period!"

I ran. Had I been that terrifying on my period?

As Louisa, my period had made me quite vicious.

The biggest problem I had was with my temper.

It still seemed to apply here, I thought with a shudder.

-Hakuei's cooking-

"Neesan, I'm hungry, when will Kouen-niisama make us dinner?" I whined.

"I'm going to be cooking tonight!" She said cheerfully.

What? Instantly, I whacked my head on the sword I was training with.

"Are you all right?" Hakuei asked.

"I'm fine!" I said.

Judar appeared, all bandaged up, Kougyoku behind him.

"What'd you say you were doing, old hag?"

"I'm making dinner, of course!"

Both of their faces paled considerably at that.

Kouha had emerged, too, looking scared.

"You what?" Kouha said.

"I'm making dinner. Can't I make food for my beloved siblings?"

Oh god...

"Oi, chibi, you know what's going to happen, right? We're all fucked!" Judar hissed.

"She's going to poison the food," I mumbled.

"The last time I tasted her food, it tasted like dirt." Kougyoku whined.

"The last time I tried her soup, it tasted like bad wine. Don't even get me started on her desserts! When she uses peaches, she butchers them!" Judar moaned.

We all stared at him.

"What, I like peaches!"

"The worst thing she makes is her chicken. Thank god En-nii does most of the cooking around here!" Kouha whined.

Contrary to his looks, Kouen was actually a very passionate and good cook.

Koumei soon joined us, yawning from his nap.

Kouen came last. "Everyone here?" He asked.

We all nodded.

"Good, shall I start the cookin-" His face grew pale as he took in Hakuei.

"Hakuei," He began, "What are you doing?"

"What does it look like?" She said, smiling, "I'm cooking."

"Yes, but you realize that you aren't exactly the best cook."

"I want to cook, is that okay?" She said menacingly.

Even Kouen flinched.

"To be honest, your cooking sucks." Kouha said.

"What was that, Kouha-kun?"

"Fine, we'll try it," Judar grumbled.

So Judar, Kouha, Koumei, Kouen, Kougyoku, Hakuei and myself were seated at the table and she started passing out the food to everyone.

"What is this?" Kouha protested.

"It's soup, I made it for you guys." She said, but the soup looked awful with raw vegetables and felt awfully cold and mushy. "Here's some bread I made for you all!"

The so-called bread looked badly burnt.

"Try some, Kou," She said before handing a piece of bread to Kougyoku, who looked very hesitant. "Well, let me see what you all think!"

When no one said anything, she turned to me, "You try first, little brother."

I stared at the piece of bread in front of me, picked it up and put it in my mouth, and chewed.

"Well, what do you think?" She said.

I gagged. It was horrible. "You burned it, sister."

"Don't put it in the oven for too long," Kouen said.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Kouen, I must've messed up," Hakuei said.

"You always mess up, old hag!" Judar taunted.

"Judar-" Kouen said in warning.

"What do you think, old hag?" He said to Kougyoku.

"I-It tastes like s-s-"

"Don't piss her off any more than she already is!" Koumei warned.

"Don't think I didn't hear that, Koumei."

"Why did I step outside my room?" He moaned.

"Because you're an idiot," Kouha said.

"Mei-nii is an idiot?" Kougyoku said.

"Kouen, onii-sama, try it," Hakuei said, offering the soup to him.

He was stoic as he picked up the spoon and swallowed.

"Brave, brave soul," Judar muttered.

"Forever honor En-nii's courage!" Kougyoku said.

Upon seeing Hakuei shoot glares at them, they both froze.

I swore I'd never seen Kouen get so green in the face.

He shot up out of his seat, dashed to the bathroom and then came back.

"Something in that made me sick," He said, "You'd better not serve it anyone."

"What did I do?"

"Did you even cook it?" Kouen pressed.

"I left it on the stove for forty minutes and then put some water in it." She said cheerfully.

"You don't do that, you could make people sick." Kouen said calmly.

"Oh," She said, "Um, how about the bread?"

We stared at the black lumps of bread.

"No way!" Judar cried.

"Goodbye, Judar," I said as he had the bread thrown in his face by Hakuei.

So we had Kouen cook in the end. He kept on muttering how it was all her fault that no one liked her food.

Hakuei was pouting.

"It's okay, your food sucks and it's shit." Kouha teased.

Next second, Kouha was thrown out of his seat.

"Did you learn your lesson?" I said.

"Don't piss Neesan off." I said.

"I asked her why the bread was cooked wrong and she...she threw something at me." Kougyoku whined.

"What's this? How come no one invited me to dinner?" Gyokuen said.

Kouha, Kougyoku, Judar, Kouen and I froze.

"Mother, I did some cooking!"

I swore I saw Gyokuen flinch.

"Really, now. Can I-I uh, try your cooking?"

Perhaps even she had standards in that evil heart of hers.

"Try the bread!"

"It looks...appealing," She mumbled. I swore she was shaking.

Even Gyokuen was frightened.

Angry Hakuei was scary Hakuei.

"What's wrong, Mother?"

"Nothing, I'll try this food made by my precious daughter!"

Gyokuen took on five shades of red. She gasped.

"Pretty good. It's just the right tinge of burned flavor! You can do better than that!" Gyokuen sneered.

"Yes, I'll try my best!" Hakuei said.

"You do realize she was insulting you, right?" Kouha sneered.

"No, Mother loves ALL OF US."

"Sure she does," Koumei muttered, "Haven't heard that line before."

"Hakuei really is stupid," Judar said, slouching back in his chair.

Judar had a piece of bread thrown at his face again.

"Judar-chan!" Kougyoku cried.

"Anyone else willing to insult my cooking?"

We all flinched.

-Part 2: Of Alibaba's fear of water and a real lady-

"Since we're on this boat, we might as well have a summer vacation!" Alibaba declared, "Here's your swimming suit!"

He handed me one.

I stared at Kougyoku's suit in envy.

"I'd rather wear that," I mumbled.

"We ALL know you're gay." He taunted.

He handed Aladdin some clothes.

"This outfit is rather revealing," Kougyoku said, staring at the bathing suit that exposed some cleavage and showing off her legs.

I blushed as I got a nosebleed.

"Don't worry, I'll be watching you the whole time." I said.

Kougyoku blushed.

"What about you, Morgiana? Morgiana?"

Morgiana pranced out, wearing...a stunning outfit that showed off her beautiful leg.

Her red hair...she was beautiful.

I looked down at my pants and blushed.

"You're so beautiful, Morgiana-chan!" Kougyoku gushed.

Morgiana was looking at me in disbelief.

"You're awesome, Morgiana!" Alibaba cried.

"What about your bathing suit?" Morgiana pointed out.

"Um, like I said, I don't like water and I can't swim!" Alibaba said nervously.

"You will be," Morgiana said.

"What if I said no?"

The crack formed in the plank of the ship told him her answer.

"Why me?" He moaned as we held him on the ship's plank.

"Come on, Alibaba, take a step." I said.

"No, you can't!" He cried.

"Alibaba-chan, can I hit you with Vinea?" Kougyoku said sweetly.

"Ah, no! It's just, you know I hate water. I can't do it!"

Suddenly Alibaba fell into the water, screaming.

"Alibaba-kun!" Aladdin cried.

"He'll save himself!" Morgiana said.

"Djinn Equip, Vinea!" Kougyoku said as she transformed and dove down and picked him up. "You all right?"

"Yeah," He said, but I noticed where he was looking.

"Are you looking at my breasts?" Kougyoku said.

"Yeah..." He said.

Suddenly, a wave of water threw him back on board.

"Serves you right for looking at me like that!" Kougyoku cried.

"Are you making a move on my girlfriend?" I said.

"It doesn't matter, you guys are related!" He whined.

"No, it doesn't matter," Kougyoku cried.

"I think you look awesome, Kougyoku." I said.

"You look cute, too, Hakuryuu-kun." She said. "What about the other girl, Alibaba-chan?"

"What girl? I don't see any other girls except Kougyoku-san!" Aladdin chirped.

"Oh, you're right, the only girl I see is Kougyoku!" Alibaba said.

Morgiana stomped the ground.

"Morgiana?" He said warily.

"I'm a girl, too," She said harshly.

"I meant, I like feminine girls, girls that are into like, dresses and stuff."

The impending kick sent Alibaba backwards.

"Say any more insults and you'll find yourself underwater." Morgiana threatened.

"I'm sorry!" He wailed.

"Girls can be a bit difficult, can they?" I said.

She nodded, "Yeah. Whenever I find Sinbad, I'm gonna kick his ass."

I froze. "The Kou girls are the most terrifying, Kougyoku."

"Yeah, Kourin-nee-sama is scary when mad, but so is Hakuei."

"Mother is the most terrifying." I said.

-Part Three, Flirting with girls at the Brothel-

The next day, Kougyoku tormented Alibaba with Vinea while I stood by, laughing.

"Help, Hakuryuu!" He cried.

"Nope," I said.

"Okay, you guys," He said to me, Kougyoku and Aladdin when Morgiana was elsewhere, "I was thinking that we could go to an all-ladies' club!"

"Aren't those places kinda lewd?" Kougyoku said.

"Yeah, why would you mind, Kougyoku?" Alibaba said.

"Ka Koubun would be very displeased if he knew I'd been in such a horrible place."

"I'll cover your eyes," I said.

She nodded before blushing. "Hakuryuu, you're the best boyfriend. Too bad Sinbad and Alibaba-chan aren't up to par."

"What?" He cried. "I thought you liked me!"

"I did, but Hakuryuu is better," She said, puffing her cheeks out. She didn't say a single word to him on the way there, leaving him a flustered mess.

I could tell that he liked her, but I thought his heart was truly on Morgiana.

"So many pretty ladies," Kougyoku said, but her eyes widened as she took in Aladdin doing his dirty thing with women. "You stop that right now, Aladdin!" She brandished Vinea's sword and hit him over the head with it.

"I like doing it!"

"You cannot just do that to women! It's a horrible thing to do to women!"

"They like it," Was his defense.

"No, they do not!" Kougyoku hissed, looking like a viper.

"Oh, you're a handsome young man." A voice said from behind me.

I turned, I knew that voice. "Uhh...hello?" I said.

The woman behind me...looked like Elizabeth.

"Have we met before?" I asked, my face frozen.

"MY name is Margaret," She said.

"Margaret, huh?" I said, smiling.

"Hakuryuu, what kind of woman did you manage to scor-" Alibaba said, but froze upon seeing Margaret's face.

"What handsome young men!" She said, leading us both to her table.

"Kougyoku, help me!" I said.

"Have fun, Alibaba-chan!" She said.

"Help me, please!" Alibaba cried.

"You are a nice young man, you don't have to suffer for this," She said, setting me aside as she dragged Alibaba back.

"You traitorsssss!" Was all we could hear.

The next thing we knew, Alibaba came out, covered with kiss marks and looking traumatized.

"What happened?" I said smugly.

"She kissed me...and then tried to...make out with me." He said. "She was so ugly...almost as ugly as...as..."

"As who?" She said.

"Almost as ugly as Morgiana," He moaned.

"AGHHHHH!"

Alibaba's scream could be heard around the town as Vinea was summoned...again.

"Say that again about my friend, and you'll be drowned." She said.

"Please don't hurt me with water!" Alibaba cried.


	8. Chapter 8

_Time for the next chapter of this story-btw, the first chapter will be rewritten. I don't feel it is good enough-Hakuryuu has been attacking me, demanding an update._

 _I saw an author do a female-reincarnated as male fanfiction-it was fairly realistic until they had them get sexually assaulted and had the nerve to claim it was okay and loving. Louisa isn't_ _ **just a murder victim-I**_ _will be adding that she was raped and has some fear (as a child) of being a man and of her/his big brothers because the last man she knew betrayed her and murdered her. So expect not this chapter to be updated, not just this, but the first chapter as well._

 _Yes. Hakuryuu identifies more as male now, but that does not completely negate his female side. Title is from song "Throne" by Bring me the horizon, which fits Hakuryuu perfectly in this story._

 _I apologize if it's been two months since I last updated, college is coming back in two weeks, so I'll be busy four days a week, so updates might be a bit sparse. I have the next week and half to stop goofing around and get some fanfiction work done._

 _Happy new year, everyone. :D_

Chapter Eight: _Every Scar Will Build My Throne_

* * *

 _I was playing by myself, my long hair falling into my face; when suddenly, I heard a voice behind me._

 _It was a boy, with short black hair and gray eyes. I knew I'd seen him somewhere before, but I couldn't place it. Who was he? "Who are you?" I called out, running out to meet him._

 _"I'm Hakuryuu...Hakuryuu Ren!" He sniffled, falling to his knees and sobbing._

 _"I'm Louisa! What's wrong, Hakuryuu? Why are you crying so much?" I asked, looking the young boy over. He seemed to be really hurting from something._

 _"My brothers are dead, my father is gone, and my mother is evil...I can't do anything!" He moaned. "Someone please help me."_

 _I stared at him in pity. "Why don't we become friends, then?" I extended out my hand._

 _The little boy looked at me. "Why would you want to be friends with me when I have this ugly scar on my face?" He said._

 _I touched his scar. "I don't care. I think you look really cool with that scar."_

 _He blushed. "We can be friends, then! I'll introduce you to my sister, and Kougyoku, and..."_

 _We shook hands._

 _Suddenly, everything shifted. The toddler Hakuryuu disappeared, as I was suddenly running for my life, down an endless maze of doors._

 _My long hair fell behind me as I ran, afraid of him. Who was he? I had no idea who he was, just that he was someone I hated._

 _He grabbed me. "I caught you now, you stupid bitch."_

 _"Who are you and what do you want from me?" I cried, but he didn't answer, instead he pulled out a knife and tried to stab at my arm._

 _"Who the hell are you?" He cried, as I pushed him aside._

 _My long black hair got in my face as I stared at him._

 _"You shall pay for what you did to me. Dwell in my body, Zagan."_

 _"I have nothing against you, kid, get out of my way!" He snarled._

 _"What you did to me was disgusting." I said, as I slashed his stomach and stomped on him. I didn't even remember what this man's name was, yet something about him pissed me off._

 _"You are going to pay the price for your crimes." I said, as I cut his head off._

 _I was falling to my knees, laughing, laughing, laughing._

 _Then I was crying..._

 _Endless tears._

 _Why was I crying?_

 _This is what I wanted, right?_

 _Perhaps, the second I entered this body, started this accursed life, I was doomed to the same fate; depravity._

 _Perhaps._

 _Perhaps._

 _Perhaps._

 _Perhaps-_

 _"Hakuryuu!"_

 _A voice. I turned my head. No one was there._

 _"Hakuryuu!"_

* * *

I shot up in bed with a sudden gasp.

As my vision focused, I made out my bed. The vision in my left eye had always been a bit more... well, off than the other eye, probably because of the damage sustained in it by the scar. I frowned, and touched the burned part of my face with my wooden arm. It felt weird, having it feel so numb.

Oh yeah, next I'm gonna be Hakuryuu, the Full Wooden Alchemist.

I turned to the source of the voice in time to see, Hakuei...she was by my bedside.

"Hakuryuu, are you all right? You were having a nightmare, and screaming in your sleep." She said.

I stared at her before I looked away. "I'm just fine, Onee-san, no need for you to worry about me."

"I should be worried about you, Hakuryuu. After all that stuff you said about Mother-"

"It's the truth," Judar chirped from behind us.

"Judar, don't you go planting ideas in my little brother's head!"

And so it began.

Judar and Hakuei had not gotten along from day one. It didn't help that Judar had loved to tag alongside me and annoy me or get me to assist him in his trollish ways. Being the bored adult stuck in a child's body that I was, I had gleefully partaken in it.

Judar was twisted and childish, but this cruel destiny had turned him into the demon he was. He'd never had a say in it. Just like me.

"Oh, but I'm not planting ideas," He said lazily, "It's the truth, if ya wanna know, try asking the old lady herself."

"You can't just talk about Mother like that-" Hakuei said.

"It's not lying if it's true." I said dully.

As I got ready to meet with my siblings, my mind drifted to Kouen. I would finally have to meet him like a proper man and discuss things. If I wanted to change my destiny, I would have to alter some things.

But was I prepared for the repercussions of said actions?

I was so lost in thought that I nearly collided with Kouha.

"Hey, Hakuryuu, that outfit of yours is badass." He said approvingly.

"Badass?" I said, "I like that."

"Hakuryuu?" Hakuei said from behind me.

"Yes?" I said.

"In that nightmare earlier, you were laughing...insanely. It scared me. It worried me so much." She said.

"What?" I said.

"I'm just fine," I said, "You do not need to worry about me now, Sister."

"I'll still worry over you!" She shrieked as I walked off, Judar in tow.

"Why are you _stalking_ me, Judar?" I asked, plainly annoyed.

"You're my future king."

"So?" I said.

"I need to be everywhere a future king will go."

" _So basically you're a stalker_." I said in annoyance.

"You know you like my company." Judar said sarcastically.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," I grumbled.

"Hakuryuu."

I turned; that baritone voice, it could only be...speak of the devil, it was Kouen.

I had been dreading this moment.

"Hakuryuu, you were always afraid of me when you were a child. I am glad you have matured enough that we can speak to each other face to face, like men."

Part of my mind wanted to scream that no, I'm a woman! But I stopped myself. I wasn't like that anymore. I was now a guy. I had to deal with it. Honestly. I had to.

"Yes," I said, folding my arms together.

"That's a nice arm you've got there," He said.

I flinched. "My djinn provided me with it." I said.

"Is that so?" Kouen said, "I would like to talk about you. More importantly, tell me exactly what Sinbad has been doing to Kougyoku."

I saw, out of the corner of my eye, Kougyoku behind us, listening in.

"Right, he has been using Zepar to control her mind and he did so deliberately during her fight with him. He also said he wanted to use Zepar to make me a tool of Sindria, no matter what I thought of the idea." I said.

I saw Kouen's face turn puce with anger. I'd never seen him react that way before.

"Very well then. If that's how Sinbad wishes it to be, I shall grant his wishes. I am going to go meet with Sinbad and tell him the Kou Empire will cut all ties with his country."

I stared at him in shock. "But you can't mean."

"He has violated my trust by using my sister like that, and for using you." He said.

"But I-"

"Regardless of whatever unfavorable opinions you may hold of the Empress, you are still my cousin, my blood. That means that you are a Kou Prince. What this means is that he will no longer be allowed to set foot on the Kou Empire or be near any of you."

"I want to kill him myself." Kougyoku said, brimming with fury.

"There is no need for that," Kouen said, "I will do what is needed."

I shuddered.

"Do not worry, Hakuryuu. I am sure that your brothers would've wanted me to look out for you."

"Thank you...brother." I muttered, feeling my cheeks heat up.

"Are you afraid of Kouen-nii?" Kougyoku asked.

"I used to be, when I was younger," I said, "Now I see that he is actually very gentle."

"What's got En-nii so pissed off?" Kouha said from behind us.

Once we told him, he got very angry as well.

All this time, I had been too afraid of Kouen to really get to know him. And as it turns out, he actually was pretty decent.

Aside from wanting to rule the entire world.

Everyone wants to do that in this series, though, so it's not as though he's an exception to the rule.

* * *

"What brings you to Sindria, Kouen?" Sinbad said coolly, though it looked like he knew why.

"I've come to discuss severing ties with you." Kouen said, to the point like always.

Sinbad seemed shocked at first, but then shook it off. "Whatever would make you think that way?"

"Why, someone told me you have been fooling around with my sister." He said icily.

"Kougyoku is an innocent young woman."

"Do not play dumb with me, Sinbad. I know about you toying with her mind. How long have you been spying on my relatives, gathering information?" He said.

"I am doing what is necessary to protect my country."

"And that entails brainwashing my sister, as well as coercing my cousin into your dirty games?"

"Hakuryuu-kun?"

I flinched. He knew I was there.

"Kouen is mistaken, is he not?"

I chose not to answer.

Jafar came to Sinbad's defense.

"It is true that Sin has done some despicable deeds. He intends the best for everyone." He said.

"If that's so, then why ensnare my cousin?" I said.

"Hakuryuu," Kouen said, "I told you I would handle everything."

Somehow, I couldn't help myself.

"Admit it, Sinbad, you're being cowardly. You use your country as an excuse to do horrible things."

"Hakuryuu-kun, whatever have I done to inspire such impudence from you? Don't you have loyalty to Sindria? Please, we can see reason." Sinbad said, extending his hand to me.

I felt an invasive force trying to enter my mind.

I looked away instinctively.

"Hakuryuu-kun, I'd never do anything bad."

Suddenly, a mental image of Gyokuen appeared in his place, saying the same words.

"No!" I cried, slapping his hand away.

"Hakuryuu, are you all right?" Kouen asked, but I couldn't respond.

I slid to the ground, shaking, temporarily affected by what Sinbad had tried to do to me. Having your mind invaded is never a pleasurable experience, and even a dungeon capturer could not resist it. If Kougyoku couldn't, how could I?

On top of that, having been a female in my past life, having my mind invaded just seemed like another form of rape.

"I see what you did. You tried to invade my little brother's mind, correct?"

"You're smarter than I thought you would be, Kouen," Sinbad said, sounding lazy. What was it with Sinbad? He seemed so off.

Yet, I couldn't put my finger on it.

Kougyoku's voice drifted into my ears as I slowly stood back up, as everything swam back into place.

"Sinbad-sama." Kougyoku purred, rubbing her hands together.

Sinbad flinched at all the killing intent coming from her.

"Kougyoku, Hakuryuu, I will handle this myself. Now leave the room." He said, gently nudging me forward.

But there was still one more thing I had to say to Sinbad.

"I will no longer allow you near my siblings. If I see you near either of them, it will mean war."

"You wouldn't dare. I have seven metal vessels."

"Hakuryuu-kun, don't you think you're making a mistake by becoming my enemy?"

I flinched, but turned around. "And you made a mistake when you decided to fuck with my cousin's mind. Goodbye, Sinbad."

I slammed the door shut.

"Hakuryuu, are you all right?" Kougyoku asked.

"He tried to invade my mind, too," I said.

"I hope there's a way I can free myself from his control." Kougyoku said.

"If there's a way, we'll find it." I said, my fists tightening.

"Prince Hakuryuu." It was Jafar.

I turned to stare at him. "What?"

"I think you went too far. And Sin went too far, too. Sin has been acting out of sorts, lately. He doesn't seem like Sinbad anymore. I feel like he's going to fall...one of these days. Please, help me stop him."

I looked at him with wide eyes, not expecting this. "Can't you do that yourself?"

"No, he will not listen to me anymore." He said, "That's why I am begging you, to please, help him."

"I will...keep it in mind." I said.

Jafar was never discounted by Sinbad. The idea that he would be struck me as something horrendously wrong. Either he was falling or else something worse was happening. What that was, I didn't know.

The way he acted now, it was like I had changed history.

Even worse was that I seemed to be falling into depravity. It was oh so easy to do.

The next few weeks seemed to slide by.

Then, I received an unexpected visitor.

"Hakuryuu!"

A blond blur hugged my cousin.

Yep, it was Alibaba.

Why was he here earlier than expected?

That was strange.

"Alibaba-chan!" Kougyoku said, chatting happily with her dear friend.

As the two of them talked on and on, I stood there, watching them, swinging my sword back and forth.

"Hakuryuu, you've gotten taller, I can't believe it's you!" He cried. "You were such a short kid when I saw you..." He grumbled.

"And you've gotten more...muscular." I said sarcastically.

"Hakuryuu, what's this I hear about the Kou Empire severing ties...? Does it have to do with...?"

"Yes. It does have to do with Sinbad." I said.

"Nii-sama said he'll die if he touches me again." Kougyoku said happily.

"Kouen wants to declare war with him? Is he nuts? Sinbad is so strong!"

"Alibaba, please. Speaking his name now is like a toxin." I said sharply.

"Oh. Does that mean you're not welcome in Sindria anymore?"

"No. Sinbad told all of us to get out. That's exactly what we're doing."

"I see...you must have your reasons for doing this. But you know, you look more icy and...it's bothering me."

"Kougyoku, I was thinking, could you go out with me?" He said.

Suddenly a foot hit him from behind.

It was...Morgiana.

"Morgiana...? You've become prettier." I said, damning these male hormones to hell.

Upon hearing Kougyoku grunt from behind me, I stopped.

"Yes."

"Guess what? I met a potential girlfriend, and then she turned me down!" He whined.

"Tell me all about it." I said.

So Alibaba started telling me about his training in Reim, and meeting Toto and Olba. Somehow, Morgiana had decided to find Alibaba, and in turn had met the Fanalis corps and become friends with them. She'd had some special training from them.

"I can't believe a little twerp like him is your friend." I said, snorting.

"Hey, Olba's not that bad! He even joined my house!" Alibaba cried.

"Alibaba, your naivete is too much."

"That's what I like about Alibaba-chan." Kougyoku said, "But I think he can afford to stop being afraid of water."

"I've already said that I hate water! Why don't you people listen?" He cried.

"Ah, if it isn't the blond prince brat?"

Judar.

"What's someone like you doing around Hakuryuu?" Alibaba asked.

Morgiana was giving Judar an unfriendly stare, too.

"Alibaba, Judar is a friend of mine. He is my ally."

"Hey, the kid's got more common sense than you do. It was awesome to come back to Sindria and taunt Sinbad about it. Course, I got attacked, but it was what he deserved." Judar said. "So how soon till you two get laid?"

Kougyoku and I both flushed.

"THAT'S NOT TRUE AT ALL, JUDAR-CHAN!" She yelped.

"Ah, then what's this I hear about you two kissing?" Judar said, "I saw you."

"It was a mistake!" Kougyoku wailed.

I flinched.

"You're right about that, but if you tell a word about it to anyone, you're dead."

"I suppose I can't. You're such a Tsundere, HakuHaku."

"I heard that." I said, "And you can stop with the annoying nicknames."

"So, uh, would you guys like to go out with some women?"

The kick from Morgiana told him all he needed to know.

"Aladdin's in Magnostadt. I am worried. I tried writing him and he wouldn't answer."

"Yes, I've heard unsavory things, but they're just rumors." I said.

"That old man is a real idiot." Judar said.

"Judar, everyone who doesn't agree with you is." I said.

"That's the truth!" He said, laughing.

Having Sindria as an enemy was bad.

If this was what it took to change destiny, then so be it.

'I will not lose. Not to Sinbad, not to anyone else.'


	9. Chapter 9 collapsing world

_**A/N: GODDAMMIT, SO MANY FUCKING MUSES! THEY WON'T SHUT UP. I SWEAR TO GOD, FIRST IDEAS FOR PER IRONIAM FATUM, THEN TABULA RASA! bUT THIS ONE IS BY FAR ONE OF THE MOST ANNOYING, PERSISTENT AND UNSTABLE STORIES EVER-**_

 _ **AS WELL AS MY most interesting oc yet. I admit it-this one and Shinigami are my favorite stories. I have favorites. I will still be updating my HP, OCs, Magi, and crossovers to PH and DRRR stuff. The rest, like the Geass stuff, is probably still on hiatus. Darkest Savior I'll get around to whenever.**_

 _ **The whole damned story needs a rewrite so it makes some fucking sense, as my Geass interest has waned considerably, but with Gundam Wing once again becoming my top watch, perhaps my interest in mechas has come back. My Magi interest is still there, as is my DRRR interest. Pandora Hearts hasn't lost its magic, either, that shit is so good.**_

 _ **Now, it's time for Awakening the Darkness. This OC has not changed everything. Despite what might have happened last chapter, reality is a bitch and Hakuryuu will learn that. Also, not everyone is as unaware of Hakuryuu's identity as he thinks. And yeah, Hakuryuu's bigender. Sorry if tumblr stuff comes into this, but I admit him being bigender ties in well.**_

 _ **Of all my OCs, he's the one who has the hardest time adjusting to being male. So expect this chapter to have more twists in it like usual. On that note, WHERE ARE YOU, SINGULAR POISONOUS ASHES? I MISS SEEING YOU REVIEW MY STUFF!**_

 _ **Well, aside from the long-winded story intro, I suppose I'll just get on to the chapter. My life lately has been very depressing, so expect some darker material out of me. On my profile, I will discuss why you do not want to write overpowered OCs.**_

 _ **Hakuryuu died in a violent way as a woman, so being reborn as a man has caused a lot of dysphoria. He can't change everything, he's only a child. Adults don't listen.**_

 _ **Chapter 9 Collapsing World, in which fate is cruelly ironic and cynical; did I also mention that mom's a crazy mofo who wants the whole world to die?**_

* * *

When I'd first learned that I'd landed in the Magi world, I thought I could change absolutely everything. I thought I could make everything better, make it so Titus couldn't suffer, so my brothers wouldn't have to die, so Kougyoku and Sinbad wouldn't have to cross paths.

I regret ever being so naive.

Had I managed to do more damage than the canon Hakuryuu?

Not only had I damaged the Kou Empire's relationship with Sindria, it was just my word. I was only a teenage kid, what good were my words against Sinbad's persuasive techniques? I had now officially made it so that both of the two countries at any time could go to war at any time, over such a small thing.

Kouen could very well have dismissed me as being crazy.

He knew that I didn't like Gyokuen, or Sinbad, or Sindria, or the Kou Empire itself. That way of thinking was considered heresy. Why didn't he arrest me? Why didn't he do something to me?

Kouen had to be using me for something, I decided.

It wasn't just because of brotherly love or some such nonsense, he had to be using me. Like Sinbad, Kouen desired knowledge, power, and would do anything to obtain it.

Was I like that?

I hadn't been using Kougyoku.

I had no desire to use people.

But-to become stronger, and to feel safe...I would.

I was willing to use others so easily? What would my old self have thought?

'Nothing,' I thought to myself, 'because she's dead. That old innocent side of me died the second that man stabbed her to death. For being too naive and foolish.'

I just had to bite back a laugh at how stupid I'd been then. Believing that no one would ever hurt me. Betray me. How I wanted to go back in time and spit in my previous self's face and tell her, you should never trust in anyone.

As I sat in Kouen's office, my mind traveled back to the time when I was a very small child physically, trying to warn Hakuyuu and Hakuren of their fates.

 _"What is it, little brother?" Hakuren asked, watching me in amusement as I attempted to remaster the art of walking, and failing miserably._

 _"Big fire start in palace!"_

 _"IS this a story you made up?" Hakuyuu asked._

 _"No, big brothers going to die!"_

 _"We're not going to die yet, Hakuryuu!" Hakuren said, dismissing me as the child that I was._

 _"But Mama kill you and make fire, she laughs, she's bad." I said, waving my arms around._

 _They looked at me like I was nuts._

 _They didn't believe me._

 _I stared at them, as I tried to make them understand that they were going to die._

 _They were going to die!_

 _Hakuyuu and Hakuren shook their heads._

 _"I think when we were little, we had that imagination." They said. "Didn't we?"_

 _"Big sister!" I cried out to Hakuei. "Brothers gonna die!"_

 _"They're not going to die, Hakuryuu," Hakuei said, patronizingly._

 _"Big brothers going to die!" I shouted._

 _She pulled my hand._

 _"That is not the way to talk, Hakuryuu. You should know better. We're Kou's children. We don't die so easily."_

 _"But I-" I began._

 _Only once had I even tried to ask Gyokuen if she knew of people like me. That came out awkwardly._

 _She wanted me to see her for family 'bonding time.' Why did only she make it sound like she was going to traumatize me?_

 _Oh, yeah. Because here, she's the villain._

 _"O-Okaasan?" I said, trembling, saying her name felt like a joke. One, because I was still attached to my past life mother, and two, this woman could barely be called a mother._

 _"Yes, Hakuryuu?" She purred, looking so innocent. It was as though her eyes could hypnotize you._

 _I looked away. I was only five, for goodness' sake._

 _"Is mommy a big, evil monster?" I said._

 _She looked at me in surprise. Then she smiled. "I don't know. How could your mother be your worst enemy, Hakuryuu?" Her hand snaked across my head, brushing my black locks back roughly._

 _I stared at her, eyes wide._

 _"That's a good little boy, Hakuryuu. There's nothing for you to be afraid of." Her face turned twisted and warped then. Damn, she could've been in the anime Higurashi for all I know._

 _"It doesn't matter what you say, Hakuryuu. No one will believe you, you're just a child, after all. What do you think you can do?" She said, chuckling._

 _I shuddered. It was as though she could see right through me._

 _ **(Linkin Park's Lying from You played on my radio as I was writing this, so fitting, lol.)**_

 _"You're just a little boy who discovered the truth about his mommy. But no one will believe him."_

 _"Maybe Kouen-nii sama will!" I challenged._

 _She laughed. "Hakuryuu, you're truly interesting. Hakuryuu, for my child, you don't really act much like one. You're precocious, aren't you? Or perhaps something entirely different? Perhaps you're an older soul than you look."_

 _I looked at her with wide eyes._

 _"Oh, how interesting. My Hakuryuu-kun remembers his rukh from another life. That's cheating. Oh well, no one will believe you anyway."_

 _I heard footsteps coming._

 _It was Hakuei._

 _"Neesan will understand!" I cried._

 _She laughed. "Oh, Hakuryuu-kun, my little genius. A precocious little boy. Unfortunately, no one cares." Her hand caressed my cheek and I instantly recoiled._

 _"Such a bad little boy." She said, glaring. "That's not very nice."_

 _"Am I interrupting something?" Hakuei asked._

 _"We were just talking," Gyokuen said, smiling innocently._

 _"Big sister!" I cried. "She's evil, she's going to hurt you!"_

 _Hakuei slapped me. "How dare you say such things about Mother!"_

 _"But-"_

 _My eyes darted back over to Gyokuen, who was staring malevolently at me. The sight sent chills up my spine._

 _How the hell did she know about me? How did she know?_

 _Then it hit me._

 _She had traveled dimensions, so how would she not know about people like me?_

 _If she could cheat the plot, then so could I!_

 _And so ended my attempts to convince anyone of anything._

 _I had tried before to talk to my father, but he waved me off, putting it as the words and foolishness of a child._

 _I wish I could've controlled my actions better, but what could I do?_

I stared at my wooden arm, waving it around. I missed the feel of my other arm, but that arm was gone. Irreplaceable. Unless of course, someone else gave me their limbs.

I looked at Kouen. Did I really want to execute him? Start a dictatorship? Give the country over to Sinbad?

No way.

It was obvious Sinbad had already been corrupted.

My gaze returned to my sister, who was looking very stern.

Kougyoku was beside me, looking so worn out and tired, so unlike the vivid, energetic girl I knew.

"Hakuryuu," Kouen began, "Remember when you were little and you tried to warn me about something?"

I stared at him. How did he still remember this?

"You tried to warn me about our brothers. How is it that you knew?"

I frowned. "Judar told me." I said.

"I see," Kouen said, "So he knew that they were going to die. He shouldn't have told you such things."

"Oh, poor Hakuryuu, you're still bothered by that, aren't you?" Hakuei said.

How should I not be with this scar on my face?

I looked away from Kouen.

"Hakuryuu, I don't necessarily agree with what you did here." Hakuei said sharply.

"Sinbad can't hurt Kougyoku. Isn't that what everyone wants?" I said.

"I'm sorry, Hakuryuu, I really want to believe everything you say. However, you realize that there are some things even I cannot do. I do wish for my cousin to stay safe, but Sinbad is an important ally. Angering him was a big mistake. Therefore, this will be a temporary truce that we will have. I will make sure he doesn't touch either of you."

"So basically," Hakuei said, "That means-"

"That we still have to do business with him."

"Exactly, Hakuryuu. You're still too young to understand how these things work. But I appreciate you standing up for Kougyoku. That showed great loyalty to the Kou Empire. Great loyalty to your siblings."

"Hey, if Hakuryuu hadn't done it, I would have," Kouha spoke up, having entered the room.

Kouen dismissed everyone else.

"Hakuryuu, please remain in the hallway."

I heard him and Hakuei talking. If I strained my ears, I could make out their conversation.

"-He claims Mother is evil and wants to destroy the world."

"The Empress might be a bit off her rocker, but I don't think she would go that far. Most likely, Hakuryuu is still angry with her because of how his brothers died."

"He said she killed our siblings."

"The way in which they died was always rather suspicious. But even if the Empress were like that, I don't think she would go that far. Most likely, Hakuryuu is just looking for somebody to blame. No, it's not just that. It's that he's been through so much at such a young age, losing his brothers and his father, do you not see how he would turn to the sole surviving parent? And now he's striking out at you, his older sister, for not believing him. He feels like he's the only one who knows what's right."

"You felt like that when you were a kid." Hakuei teased.

"And so do you. Not everyone in the world will conform to the Kou Empire. Just watch over your brother and make sure he doesn't do anything reckless."

My fists were shaking.

I knew it. So Kouen was using me.

Why was I surprised? This was Magi, after all.

"Hakuryuu," Kouen said.

I sat down in a chair again.

"You overheard, didn't you? It's not like your sister is very quiet about her support of you."

"I could hear her all the way out there," I said, rubbing my sore ears.

"Tell me what it is you know about the fire that killed our brothers. Do you really believe the Empress can do such a thing?"

I nodded. "Yes. She is not to be trusted."

"Regardless of what you may feel about her, she is the Empress. I can keep an eye on her. I have always had my suspicions about her. Hakuryuu, I feel like you're putting too much on your shoulders. You're just a child."

"I'm not just a child!" I cried. "I conquered a dungeon!"

"So have the rest of us. We have a powerful army, Hakuryuu. I'm concerned about you."

Bullshit he was. He just wanted to use me.

"I care about Kougyoku. And about you. These last few months, you've been fine, then you come back and you've changed. You're friends with Judar, you're suddenly more cold and dark, it's like you're going to fall. I don't want that."

"I-" I began, but he cut me off again.

"Falling into depravity isn't worth it. Judar is a prime example of what happens when you lose your morality. I feel like you will do whatever is necessary to pursue that end. But you're unwilling to hurt others. Hakuryuu, you're not the only one in charge here, you're just a prince."

I hung my head low.

He had listened, but at the same time, he hadn't.

There was only so much I could do. I knew this. So why did it still hurt?

"I'm glad you came to me, though. You used to be so afraid of me."

"You were kinda scary, being so tall and stuff." I whispered.

He laughed. "Oh, and Hakuryuu, please don't do anything stupid or get yourself killed. And those friends of yours, I would like to meet the Magi."

"How do you-"

"Judar told us all about it. He doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut about anything. I would also like to see the Prince of Balbadd."

* * *

I came back out, thinking over how troubling this was.

I came across Kougyoku playing in the garden with Alibaba by her side, while Morgiana watched in jealousy.

"Hakuryuu-san!" Morgiana cried.

"Oh, Hakuryuu! How'd it go?" Alibaba said.

Upon seeing my disappointed face, he sighed.

"It didn't go well, huh?"

"He did all he could. He says we have to resume trading with Sindria because it supports most of the world."

"I wish the world wasn't like that." Alibaba said.

"That's not the way things should be!" I cried.

He stared at me. "Hakuryuu? What he said must've really affected you. You don't seem like yourself."

"I feel like he just didn't believe me at all...that he thinks I'm crazy." I said, staring at my hands.

"Hakuryuu," Kougyoku said, "Don't start one of those crybaby Hakuryuu moments!"

"I won't! I'm an adult now, I swear!" I said, despite the tears pricking at my eyes.

"It's okay, Hakuryuu, let it all out," Alibaba mocked.

"Shut up!" I cried.

Why did I have to live up to the name.

"He always did cry more than me," Kougyoku added.

"Dammit, don't betray me like this!" I cried.

"Alibaba-chan, I thought I hurt someone talk. I guess not!" Kougyoku said.

My fist hit the ground in anger, but then Morgiana appeared before me, handing me something.

"It's a flower crown." She said, putting it on my head.

I flushed as I stared at her. "Um, thank you," I said, feeling a little self-conscious.

"Hakuryuu-san, I believe your brother does care about you. But you can't go around doing things by yourself all the time. Otherwise, you will slip down into darkness."

"Hakuryuu, fall into depravity? No way!" Alibaba said.

"IF he does, I'll pull him out of it," Kou said.

"Yeah," I said, chuckling, "Thanks, guys," I said, my bottom lip trembling. I'd realized now how useless I was.

"Hakuryuu!" Alibaba cried, waving his hand in front of my face.

"He said he also wants to see both of you," I mumbled.

"Hakuryuu, why are you crying?" He asked.

"I don't know," I muttered. "Nobody believes me and I don't know what to do. I thought I could handle everything myself...and I can't."

"Hakuryuu, we're here for you!" Alibaba said, "One thing at a time, all right? We've gotta rescue Aladdin-"

"Check on him, not abduct him," I said.

I watched the two of them leave as I sat outside.

"Well, he said I could bring some of my friends that are part of my household here!" Alibaba exclaimed.

"Household?" I said quizzically.

"Heck yeah, here comes one of them right now!" He said excitedly.

A tall, dark-haired boy came. "Alibaba!"

"Olba, nice to see you!"

That kid was Olba?

"Olba?" I said hesitantly.

"Who's this? Oh wait a second...I know you. You're Hakuryuu, aren't you?"

"Yes, and you're that pirate brat." I said coldly.

"You murdered our leader in front of us!" Olba cried.

"Hey, let bygones be bygones!" Alibaba waved his arms.

"I don't think so. He's a brat."

"This coming from the person who is a total sociopath? I wouldn't trust him, Alibaba." Olba remarked.

"Hey, he's my friend," Alibaba snapped.

"Wouldn't be surprised if he snaps one day and kills you."

My eyes widened and I stared at him.

"Hakuryuu-san is not like that." Morgiana said imperiously.

"Well, everyone can think how they like," Alibaba said.

Olba just pouted.

"If he can be part of our household, you can still be part of it, right?"

Olba froze. "Well, I guess, but I wouldn't trust him."

It was as my mother put it, I was useless.

"How are we supposed to get to that Magnostadt place? None of us have magical abilities." Kougyoku said.

"Right," Alibaba said, "I guess we're going to have to wait. Hakuryuu, are you okay?"

I fell to my knees and started sobbing as suddenly, plants came to life around me and surrounded me.

"Hey, Hakuryuu, relax!" Alibaba said, using Amon to cut through the plants. "Don't suddenly overuse your djinn's powers again!"

"Sorry, I lost concentration for a second. Alibaba, if I actually did try to kill you, how would you react?" I stared him down.

He smiled. "You wouldn't be able to do that!"

"Last night I dreamed I did that, and I was laughing. Tell me, am I really someone to be trusted?" I whispered.

I didn't really know who I was anymore. I was kind of losing it. It was a scary feeling.

"Of course you are! You're my friend and nothing will change that!"

I stood up, wiped my tears away and smiled. "Of course, thank you, Alibaba."

That night, as everyone else lay asleep, I stared out the window at the moon outside my room.

"Zagan, do you really believe I won't fall?" I whispered in my mind.

Zagan appeared before me. "If you fall, I'll be very disappointed. You have so much potential, Haku-chan and yet you're overthinking."

"Don't call me that!" I cried, my face red.

"You made a cute girl. Too bad you're not a girl anymore." He said.

"Perverted djinn," I cried, my face flushing crimson.

"You're no fun, Hakuryuu. Good night," Zagan said before he vanished, leaving me alone in my mind.

I slowly but eventually got to sleep and was soon in a world of terror.

 _I saw myself grinning wickedly at Alibaba._

 _"Die, Alibaba!" I hissed, as Belial came at him and Alibaba fell, dead._

 _"ALIBABA!" Morgiana cried, shaking his fallen body._

 _Kougyoku aimed Vinea at me in anger._

 _"We hate you," They chanted, "How could you do this?"_

 _I turned and laughed, dementedly._

I awoke, screaming.

"Hakuryuu!" Alibaba cried, "Are you all right? We heard you screaming from our rooms!"

"I dreamed that dream again..." I muttered.


	10. Chapter 10 On the edge of despair

**A/N:Okay, everyone check out the Naruto OC fanfic called Joyous Children. The way in which they have the OC looked at by everyone else is amazing, their attention to canon and detail is amazing. I found myself thinking, why don't I do that with Hakuryuu and people's thoughts on his (already) advanced thinking and reasoning at a young age? I might wanna do it with Duo, but with Duo, people assume it's from growing up on the streets and being a soldier. Nothin' unusual there. But with Hakuryuu, his intelligence is noticed. So yeah, this is gonna be a change in POV from the perspective of Hakuryuu to that of Hakuei, and even Kouen.**

 **Halfway through, it'll change back to Hakuryuu like usual. I want to try experimenting with this change in style and see how it does.**

 **Chapter 10 A genius child or more?**

* * *

"Hakuryuu!"

Hakuei Ren screwed up her face and sighed. Where the hell was he? He had run off somewhere again, she'd only turned her attention away from him for a second and he was gone! What would Mother say?

The eight year old girl glanced around for the young boy, a frown coming on her lips. She promised she would look after him! That was what she had promised her mother! Mother was going to be so angry, and to be honest, no one liked her mother when she was angry.

Angry tears filled her eyes, but she wiped them away. The need to search for her brother was far more important.

"Hakuryuu!" She cried. She never knew what got into that boy. Some days he acted like a young child, other days he acted like an adult already.

"Nee-chan!" A soft voice called.

She looked down, and there he was, clinging to her side, looking up at her with his lips trembling. Despite the innocent gesture, his eyes were always the thing that bothered her most: _his eyes_ were always so intelligent; they were eyes that belonged to an adult, not a three-year old boy. She felt unnerved for a second, before her eyes traveled over the thing that Hakuryuu was carrying.

"Hakuryuu, where did you get that?" She demanded.

The young boy blinked and then hid the book behind him. "I wanted to read." He stated tersely.

"Hakuryuu, that book is much too advanced for your age!" As she flipped through the pages, her eyes widened. He was already halfway through the book. This was a book that was at least written for people her Nii-san's age and already he understood most of it!

"See, Nee-chan. I understand all of it!" He stated proudly, ignoring her shocked look. He was only three. _Who had taught him how to read? And better yet, how could he understand half of the big words in this book?_

"Who taught you to read? Did Mother?" Hakuei guessed closely. Bringing up their mother always was a war zone for Hakuryuu. The boy always seemed to detest their mother so much. Mentioning her triggered anything from a sudden spate of temper tantrums to him hiding behind Hakuei or even him falling deathly silent.

Her brother simply continued looking up at her with those same, wide blue eyes. Those eyes were not innocent, she felt as though Hakuryuu would grow up to be someone like her brothers, he was already an intimidating prince.

She could remember when she'd first met Hakuryuu, when she was only four years old. She'd been there for him when Mother could not. Right away, Hakuryuu was a strange child.

Hakuryuu preferred to cling to her side and shunned the affection of either of her parents. He particularly trembled when her father came near, it seemed as though he had some innate fear of men and boys. She wondered why that would be.

But nowhere did he freak out as much as he did when he had to be with their mother.

 _"Hakuryuu, it's all right, calm down!" She cried, trying to calm down the toddler, who'd started wailing and throwing himself against the wall the second his mother had approached._

 _"Oh, dear Hakuei, why doesn't he like me? I keep trying to calm him, but he just won't stop."_

 _The second their mother stepped toward him, his eyes widened and he frantically jumped into Hakuei's arms, screaming, "Nee-chan! Evil Lady! Evil Lady! Go 'way, Go 'way, evil lady!"_

 _"Hakuryuu, she is our mother. You are not to talk about her like that!" Hakuei scolded the young boy._

 _Still, he shakily approached his mother, looking as though he would rather die than face her. That was silly. Sure, Mother might be intimidating at times, but she was their mother. She was supposed to be that way, right?_

"I taught myself." He replied simply, turning his nose upward. "I undastand ev'rything in the book."

"Do you?" She said, patting his head.

He promptly flushed and turned away.

Another thing she had noticed was that Hakuryuu preferred to not play with his brothers and instead wanted to play the girly games she played. He seemed to prefer women more than boys. Her father had not taken well to that and would promptly straighten him out every time he saw such "unmanly" behaviors.

"Are you a genius, Hakuryuu?" She asked.

He looked at her. "Maybe I am." He said simply.

She gaped. He understood what the word meant.

"Okay, you tell me how much of this you understand."

Hakuryuu was a genius.

But on top of that, ever since their brothers and Fathers had died, Hakuryuu had become colder and more skittish. He wouldn't talk to her about anything, he complained of having worse vision in the eye where he'd been burned, and he was just so off that it was terrifying.

Hakuei looked for her brother, Hakuryuu, and found him playing with their stepsister, Kougyoku, who promptly flushed and hid behind her brother. The two of them were close siblings from the second they met.

"Hakuryuu, our mother wants to speak with you." She said.

Instantly, the boy's friendly smile fell off his face and a cold glare overtook it instead.

"Haku-chan, where are you going? Are you going to see the scary woman?" Kougyoku questioned.

The boy turned and smiled reassuringly at his cousin before approaching her. "What the hell does _she_ want from us?" There was so much vitriol and hatred in her young brother's tone that it scared her. What six-year-old talked like that? Either he was a genius and precocious (which she didn't doubt for a second), or else he really wasn't a child in his rukh.

She had heard of people like that before, they were people who had been born of the rukh before and still possessed some adult traits. Maybe that was Hakuryuu's deal-it might explain why Judar liked hanging around the boy.

"Hakuryuu, don't curse!" She said sharply, waggling her finger at the young boy, who merely frowned.

"Nee-san, you shouldn't trust her. She's trying to kill us!" He snapped.

"Hakuryuu, not this nonsense again!"

No matter how many times she tried to tell him, he just kept going on and on about their mother being evil. What could she do to make their strained relationship better?

"Hakuryuu, our mother is the Empress, and we must respect her." She said sharply.

"I don't need to respect that bit-" He began, but was silenced by her sharp smack to his cheek.

"Don't you go using that word! It's demeaning to women!" She shouted.

"Nee-san, I'm sorry." He muttered.

Despite her brother being six years old, he was not innocent, no matter how much he pretended to be. But then again, who would be after what they'd had to go through?

"Hakuryuu!" She cried out, approaching her brother's side, who looked at her coldly.

He'd been this way ever since he'd met with Kouen in private. What could have rattled him up so much?

"Nee-san, I am just fine. Please leave me be." He said icily, dismissing her as though she were a mere petty servant! But she was his sister, how dare he treat her like this!

"Hakuryuu!" Her arm clamped onto his shoulder.

"Nee-san, let me go!"

"No, I won't let you do everything alone!" She snapped. Whatever her brother had been going through was so bad that he was treating everyone else around him like dirt. She knew he didn't really want to be left alone.

On the inside, Hakuryuu was a sensitive and compassionate person, someone who could not survive alone. He was too kind. She recalled how much he used to cry as a child, and found herself startled by how different the quiet, mature boy in front of her was. He was growing up, wasn't he?

"Onee, I must insist that you leave me alone. That is an order. I do not wish to be with anyone at this moment!" He snapped.

"Why are you always distancing yourself from me? I just want to connect with you, I don't want to lose you, Hakuryuu!" She yelled.

He looked at her with startled eyes, finally losing some of that iciness. "Nee-san," He began, "Why-"

"Ever since you came back from Zagan, you've been so serious and cold, that I've been afraid of losing you! And now this talk of Mother comes up again! Don't you know how much I care?"

She must have been screaming by now, but she didn't care.

She needed to let him know that he wasn't alone.

Hakuryuu looked back at her, extending his arm out to her, but she just ran. Ran and ran from him, until she couldn't see him anymore. His intelligence, his precociousness, it had gotten the best of her.

* * *

Morgiana didn't know quite what to make of Hakuryuu Ren. He was oddly feminine and shy and kept to himself. When he revealed the truth of his past to them all, she was oddly drawn to him and sought to help him.

He had understood what it was like to be a woman, knew their sorrows and struggles. So she went to him, but he seemed more awkward about all of it. Still, she noticed how he had feelings for his cousin.

Still, he was her friend.

She wondered how she could help him, watching him as his sister yelled at him before running off in tears. He looked absolutely devastated as he sank to his knees, hiding his face in his robes.

She knew he was about to break. He had already been broken before in his other life when he'd been betrayed and murdered. Many times she knew Jamil threatened to kill her, but she couldn't imagine how it felt to live again after being murdered. It must have been terrifying, she decided.

That was why, she watched him in silence as he wept before approaching him slowly, not wishing to startle him before gently wiping his tears from his face and hugging him.

The male looked up, startled at the close contact before flushing.

"It's all right, Morgiana, leave me be." He snapped.

But Morgiana wasn't going to listen.

He didn't need to be alone.

Not anymore.

Not when he had people beside him.

"Give your sister time, man," Alibaba muttered, turning to a shocked Kougyoku who herself had been driven into a stunned silence by that display.

"Haku-chan..." Kougyoku whispered, "I'm sure she didn't mean it."

Hakuryuu started laughing, a gesture that startled all of them, including Morgiana.

"Hakuryuu?" She asked.

He looked up at her, grinning oddly through his tears. "This is what I deserve. She meant every word of it. I've always been pushing her away and ignoring her. I'm meant to be alone."

"Hakuryuu, don't listen to them, you deserve to belong here." Morgiana said sharply, shaking him.

He stared at them all before sniffing. "You're right, sorry I burdened you. It was a moment of weakness. I cannot let Kouen's failure to trust me bring me down."

That was the Hakuryuu she knew, a brave young man.

She smiled thinly.

* * *

How could I have done that?

I punched the wall in my room, gritting my teeth. Hakuei still wouldn't speak to me or even look at me, after that whole display. Kouha and Koumei had kept their distances, too, allowing me time to have my little temper tantrum.

And crying in front of Morgiana and Alibaba was pathetic.

I was better than this. I was no longer Louisa.

I stared at my reflection in the mirror, noting the icy coldness of my blue eyes. I wondered when I had stopped being nice and become dark. I didn't want to sink down into darkness, yet it seemed fated to be my destiny.

I was just an insignificant human being dragged along in this whirlwind of events.

I had to pick myself up again, despite what happened.

The door opened, causing me to jump.

"Who's there?" I yelled.

Kougyoku flinched. "It's me..."

"Come in," I muttered, flopping on the bed.

"Haku-chan, you're not to blame. I think all of us have been on edge since what happened with Sindria and Sinbad. It's my fault."

"Never say that, Kougyoku. It's my fault for telling you."

She whacked me on the forehead.

"I don't believe that for one second. You always intend the best for people. You're too kind. That's why I like you, Haku-chan." She took her hand in mine.

I flushed. "Even if I'm headed for depravity?"

"I don't believe you'd end up there. You're too good." She muttered, as the two of us embraced briefly.

"I need to go to sleep," I said curtly, "Thank you, Kougyoku, I needed that."

She smiled. "Any time, Haku-chan."

When she closed the door, I sighed. "Now what do I do?"


	11. Chapter 11 Kouen and Hakuryuu

_A/N:Time for the next chapter of this story! I know it's been forever since I last updated, but college reared its ugly head. I've had a lot of assignments and have been focusing on my studies, but now that I have some time to myself, I can finally get to work on these stories!_

 _Also, yesterday, a sad thing happened and it made my gloomy Hakuryuu muse come back, although this time, only three people are in this chapter: Kougyoku, Kouen and Hakuryuu. The majority of this chapter is told from Kouen's perspective, so Hakuryuu might be a little bit out of focus, but that's okay, because different POVs really enrich the plot._

 _Also, I know it might be a little OOC but this is an AU from the main story, so it's gonna be that way. And also, Kouen is the kind of man who is logical, yes, but he can believe in supernatural things as he lives in an insane world. So reincarnation isn't too unbelievable for him._

 _Btw, I don't ship Alikou anymore thanks to the fandom on tumblr, so alimor and hakukou are the pairings now._

 _"I tried to find something I already knew about life that might help me reach out and touch my brother and get him to look at me and himself."_

― Norman Maclean, A River Runs Through It and Other Stories

Chapter 11 The Fire Prince and the Dark Prince

* * *

The papers that were folded up on the desk didn't become easier to understand, the longer one looked at them. In fact, the more one would look at them, the more one would become frustrated, until their head would explode.

But for the man who was currently seated there, reading the papers, it was an easy thing to do. He was bored, because he possessed a high level of intelligence that most individuals could not hope to possess. So to him, this archaic, weird-looking tome was the equivalent of reading the newspaper in the morning.

He was very much one of the intelligentsia in this country, (if you care to put it in such a way, though this man most likely would not understand the meaning of that term, but attribute it to some form of compliment and be flattered, nonetheless.) He was a genius, and because of that, he had the chance of becoming the next Emperor of the Kou Empire.

Or so he was always told.

Kouen Ren was used to that idea potentially becoming reality, from the talk of his very siblings, who told him that his goatee made him look like he was already an old man, (goddammit, he was nearly thirty, he wasn't that old, yet!)

He swore that his siblings had all gotten terrified of him when he'd grown a goatee, for no real reason. He could recall little Kougyoku turning and running for her life, screaming about where her precious En-nii had gone to before hiding behind Judar, who had just laughed and recognized him, anyway.

For god's sake, did she still run from him to this day?

Just the notion of what that man had done to his sister made him angry to this day. Kouen pounded his fist on the table, cursing his inability to read how his little sister's behavior had changed. Goddamn it, he had noticed how close that Saluja brat had gotten with her, but he'd also noticed how...oh, god.

His eyes widened.

His sister...his sister...was with...her own _step-sibling_.

Now, he knew they weren't related by blood, but they all treated one another like family, so it didn't really look proper for the Kou Empire.

Kouen sighed. Why, of all women, did Hakuryuu have to choose someone who he was (not literally) related to? He was going to have a long, long talk with his stepbrother about proper sibling relations. And certainly, marrying them was not one of them.

Although this was a very common practice, Kouen didn't really like the idea.

Then again, Kouen was not a very ordinary man, so maybe, considering how unusual their family was, maybe he could overlook it. He'd seen how close those two had been from the time they were little. Hakuryuu seemed to cling to only Kougyoku when he was younger.

She would rarely, if ever, leave Hakuryuu's side.

He would always guide her around and he had been-aside from that pesky Judar, that boy was a no-good influence around her, he'd sworn she'd started cursing to imitate him-quite the gentleman towards her. He always watched her, he always made sure she was okay, and played her dress-up games with her without a complaint, despite having to do whatever she said.

As his thoughts came to rest on Hakuryuu, his eyes narrowed.

The boy...was probably the most _unusual_ member of their family. Not that he was aware of it, of course.

As far as Hakuryuu knew, he had a very _strained_ relationship with him. The boy believed they didn't have a good relationship or things in common. Well, in that case, he was mistaken. Kouen knew everything about his siblings, he wanted to know everything about them, as not knowing would make him a failure as an older brother. Did Hakuryuu really believe that he had the time to sit around, though, and somehow, know instantly what was wrong with him?

But right now, he was in charge of the military, he had paperwork to do (as dull as it could be) and a thousand other things to occupy his time with.

Kouha needed to stop killing impulsively (he wondered suddenly if he should ever bring that up. He knew his sibling had some psychological issues, but to go around slaughtering everyone with a sword, even in times of peace, was a bit much.)

Then there was Koumei, he was fine with him.

Kourin and his other sisters were snooty, haughty, a little too vain, but they had been spoiled by their parents and now were married off. They did have their loving sides, though. He still cared for them, even if they were a little mean and self-centered.

Then there was Kougyoku. Boy, was Kougyoku a difficult nut to crack. He just wished that she would come to him about things. He'd told her over and over that she didn't need to be afraid to come to him for advice, and yet, she never tried to, she was always terrified of him, she was always blushing around him, and terrified. It saddened him to think that their relationship had soured.

He'd thought that they were close, given how much his sister had clung to his side when she was smaller. It just frustrated him. He just wished he could do or say something to make their relationship better. But what could he do? She was already isolated from him as it was. She most likely would be too afraid of anything he might say. However, he made a mental note to at least try and reach out to her. That was the least he could do for her, now that he knew that her mind had been tampered with, he would never leave her alone ever again.

Siblings had to be there for each other. Kougyoku could accomplish so much. She was a talented Djinn Equip user, and despite the way Gyokuen treated the girl (unlike she thought, Kouen was not deaf, he had heard the many snide remarks the woman made about the "commoner brat who shouldn't be here."

He knew the woman was more than she seemed. He knew that woman wasn't right, something about her seemed purely evil. That led him to her. He wasn't quite sure what to think of her, other than that if she really thought he was blind to her utterly pathetic attempts at flirting with him, then she was stupid. But, he definitely thought that she wasn't stupid. She was...calculating, cunning...full of all the wrong kinds of things in a person.

Kouen thought that some of Hakuryuu's theories about his mother could hold some credence, because she didn't seem to be someone who would fit in well with the light. He intended on looking into more of her activities to ensure that she actually was evil.

Then his thoughts moved to Hakuei. She was quite attractive, he had to concede. However, she was still his sibling, so he had to conduct himself properly.

Even if she was his sibling...Kouen coughed, trying to get the image of her out of his mind.

He mustn't think like that.

She was very intelligent, very kind and gentle, and above all, resourceful. It was eerie how much she resembled her mother, though thankfully, she had none of her mother's arrogance and cruelty toward Kougyoku. Hakuei had always been kind and gentle towards everyone, but for some reason, his sister seemed to be...a little scared of her as well.

He remembered how proud he was of her when she'd conquered a dungeon on her own and how she'd handled an uprising within her own unit. She'd returned, a little shaken and frazzled, but still alive. He didn't want to lose any more siblings. Never again.

As he thought about Hakuei, his cheeks flushed slightly. Still, she was his sibling, so that wasn't right.

So he supposed that a marriage between them could be-all right, maybe just maybe, he could overlook Hakuryuu's feelings for Kougyoku, if he could admit his own feelings.

Maybe.

Kouen rapidly looked through his paperwork in an attempt to distract himself from those bothersome thoughts.

Then, his mind came back to rest on the last sibling and the most unusual of all, Hakuryuu.

Hakuryuu was...special.

He could recall the first time he'd met him as an infant, and noted how blue his eyes were.

The so-called "peculiarities" he had noticed about him started from when he was young. As an infant, he hardly if ever cried, and was a quiet baby. When his sister held him, he would instantly calm from whatever crying jag he might have had. However, if his mother tried to pick him up, he would start bawling again and if his father tried to pick him up, he would start crying, too.

Although eventually, Hakuryuu started preferring being with his father over his mother.

He'd noticed that Hakuryuu had a peculiar fear of men. He'd noticed this when he'd tried to talk to the boy for the first time, only for the toddler to run and hide behind his sisters, at which they'd told him that he was a very feminine and shy boy. That wouldn't do for a prince, but he was still young.

Still, Kouen couldn't help but feel like Hakuryuu's fear was more than just an ordinary, childish fear. There had to be a reason why he was specifically afraid of his own sex.

He remembered how shocked he'd been when he'd found the boy reading one of his books. When Hakuei had come to him with some story about her finding him reading a book that was much too advanced for his age, he'd suddenly started wondering about the boy. While on the outside, he looked like a child, he had intelligence that was unlike that of a regular child.

However, as he'd gotten older, he had dismissed the ideas of Hakuryuu being a magi.

Maybe he had some very old rukh inside him that taught him things. That was the only explanation Kouen could come up with. He wasn't a believer in things like people coming back from the dead.

However, sometimes when he'd looked at the boy as a toddler, he'd felt like he was staring into the eyes of an adult rather than a little boy. It was just his eyes, everything else but that looked like a regular boy. His eyes looked calculating, perceptive.

Maybe he himself had been a little afraid of the boy. Okay, he did not just admit to having been afraid of his own sibling. Maybe he had been.

* * *

 _"Hakuryuu," Kouen said._

 _The child looked up at him, having heard his name being mentioned. "Y-Yes?" He muttered._

 _He immediately averted his gaze._

 _"Can you please look at me when I talk to you?"_

 _"Y-Yes, b-brother." Hakuryuu said, flinching. "Please don't be mad at me-"_

 _"I'm not angry with you." Kouen said, leaning down to meet Hakuryuu's gaze. "I'm just curious. Your older sister told me you were reading one of these books, and you understood around half of it. Is that true?"_

 _The boy nodded._

 _"This is a book that only adults should understand. How did you pick up such knowledge?"_

 _"Um...I..I'm smart."_

 _"Yes, I can understand that. You're smarter than a lot of people, Hakuryuu, and that's something you might have to keep to yourself."_

 _"What does war mean?" Big blue eyes blinked up at him._

 _Kouen wondered why he would ask a question like that, but nonetheless, he answered. "There are some people in this world who do not agree with our ways. Sometimes, we will do things that might seem bad, but it's actually a good thing, we make things better."  
_

 _"So...we have to hurt people?"_

 _"Unfortunately, yes. But since you are a prince, you have some of the highest protection possible, so you do not need to worry. I will always protect you."_

 _"Even if we're just...?"_

 _"Even if we're just step-siblings, yes." He said softly._

And then...the day that he wished he could forget happened. The fire, the day that Hakuryuu had changed forever.

He'd recalled being horrified when he'd learned of his step-siblings' deaths, his idols. He had looked up to Hakuyuu and Hakuren. And their father was dead, too. And now Hakuryuu had a horrible scar across his face.

That child's beautiful face was scarred forever.

All the doctors they'd taken him to had concluded that they would have to let those scars remain. There was no way of removing them.

The scar would forever remain.

That broke his heart.

His little brother would be permanently "disfigured" forever.

He remembered the first words his step-sibling had uttered after waking up.

The boy had looked at him and then yelled, "Mother!"

* * *

 _"Shh, it's all right, she's here, Hakuryuu." Kouen said._

 _The second he said those words, the boy's face turned puce with anger and he screamed, "Mommy evil! Mommy evil! Mommy killed daddy and my brothers!"_

 _"No, she didn't." Kouen said._

 _"Yes, she did!" He snapped._

 _Throughout it all, he noticed how Gyokuen remained eerily silent. She'd hugged the boy, sure, and said she was glad he was okay, but he had noticed the disturbing lack of any tears on her face._

 _Instead of being accusatory or even upset about such a thing, she'd repeatedly stated that Hakuryuu was a typical child, and was just being imaginative. But he'd noticed, now that he thought about it, her smile...her smile at that time was not genuine. At the time, he'd assumed she was just in shock, but now that he thought about it, he had to shudder. Could she actually be responsible for the deaths of her own family members?_

After that incident, Hakuryuu had become a stranger to them all. Now that he had returned home with the powers of a djinn, he seemed even more distant than before. All his accusations against random people, all his suspicion and distrust of everyone, it felt like his little brother was paranoid of everyone and everything around him.

Like he was...no, he refused to let his own brother fall into depravity.

First, he'd accused his own mother, then Sinbad.

Now, Sinbad was a shady fellow and he was guilty of some horrible things, but he didn't believe the man was truly going to lead everyone into war. He had all forms of cultures in his country. That line of thinking was insane.

However, after he'd encountered the man recently, he started questioning his previous thoughts and wondered if Hakuryuu could see the future, somehow. Could he foretell certain things? Was that how he'd known that his mother was evil?

Kouen sighed.

Nothing was certain. For things to be certain, he would need to get answers out of the kid.

All he knew was that things like vision telling, psychic powers, etc, were abilities strictly limited to Magi, and as far as he knew, Hakuryuu was not a Magi.

So what was it that was so extraordinary about him?

What was it that made him capable of understanding things that ordinary children should not know or comprehend?

He supposed that his brother was precocious in some way.

Then there was also his...dysphoria about his sex.

He remembered how Hakuryuu would sometimes deny that he was a male, and insist that he was female like his sister.

As he grew older, he'd gotten over that, seemingly.

He supposed it was just one of those fancies that children had. Perhaps he had looked at his older brothers and how "scary" they were, and then decided to somehow be as "non-scary" as his sisters were.

He was glad that the boy had become more confident in himself.

Still, he had to wonder-if things like Alma Torran did indeed exist, then were things like previous lifetimes possible?

Was it possible that the rukh could take you away one second and then bring you back into this world again? If so, then maybe Hakuryuu was someone who had lived one lifetime before. That would explain why he somehow had foreknowledge of things he did not know, and also explained why he would sometimes act like an adult, because he had memories of being an adult.

Kouen considered it.

This world was strange and nothing was impossible in it, it seemed.

He knew the boy was upset with him right now-no, not, boy, young man. The young man was very upset with him, but he needed to understand that he'd only said those words to reassure his elder sister, who had the utmost trust in their mother.

Right now, he was most concerned about reaching out to Hakuryuu.

After finishing his paperwork, he went out to find the boy and found him, out one of the back gardens, training with his polearm and using Zagan on the local plants.

"You seem to be adapting well with that djinn." He said.

Hakuryuu jumped slightly and glanced over at him before returning to his practice.

"I take it you're still angry with me."

"What does it look like?" The boy snapped.

"I'm quite good with a sword myself," Kouen said, choosing to ignore his comment, "Maybe I can assist you. I have some questions for you, Hakuryuu."

"About what?" Hakuryuu said, looking at him with a hint of wariness in his eyes.

"Do you possess the power of foreknowledge?"

"And what's that?"

"It's the ability to tell the future before it happens. Some magi have it. Years ago, you told me your mother was evil, and now I think I'm starting to believe it. How did you know about that?"

The boy bit his lip. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"It's obvious to me. You weren't just an ordinary child." He explained, "I believe that the rukh can bring us here, to this Earth, more than once."

The boy looked at him, eyes widening slightly. "You would actually believe such a thing?"

"Hakuryuu, we live in a world where things called dungeons exist, things we're not even fully aware of, where things we don't even fully understand yet happen. They say rukh returns to the Great Flow, who's to say that the rukh can't come back again? If so, that would tell me that you were once another person who lived with the rukh, returned to the Great Flow, then came back. That would explain why you have foreknowledge. Is that accurate?"

The boy's eyes widened. "That's what I believe to be the case, anyway. Ever since I was little, I've been plagued by visions of another life, and other things, and yes, there was some...knowledge of the future."

"Bear in mind that not everyone believes in such things, or even in rukh. So other people might find you "insane" but you're still my little brother, regardless. But that does make more sense than me believing my little brother was a genius of some sort."

"I am surprised that you believe me," Hakuryuu whispered.

"We live in an uncertain world. Anything is possible."

The boy dropped his weapon and stared at him in shock. "Are you okay in the head, brother? Are you sick? I thought that you wouldn't understand, that you wouldn't know or trust me, or that things would never be the same between us afterwards. I just..."

"Whatever you do, little brother, don't start crying again. We all know how bad your temper tantrums can get." He said patiently. "But if you need to have one, let it all out."

"Don't baby me!" He snapped. "I'll have you know I don't cry anymore!"

His face was bright red in clear embarrassment.

Wait...could it be...?

'No, that's absurd!' Kouen thought, 'No male should cry so much. It's a wonder my brother wasn't born a gir-'

Kouen stopped to look back at his brother.

"Hakuryuu," He began, "In these 'memories' of the rukh, do you remember anything at all about your previous life?"

"Bits and pieces," Was his answer, curt and evasive. In other words, 'I know, but I don't want to tell you.'

"What was your gender?"

The boy flushed. "Um..."

From the way his face was so beet-red, Kouen suddenly knew, without his brother having to tell him.

Oh my god.

He just sighed and said, "I'm guessing the rukh is a son of a bitch?"

To his surprise, Hakuryuu started to laugh.

"I didn't think I could come to you about this stuff. It's weird, and awkward and stuff."

"We're brothers and I apologize if I sounded cold earlier. It was to make your sister feel more or less relieved. I believe you about what happened to Kougyoku. Put these other memories and abilities to the side for now. Right now, we've got to maintain world peace. You have a vital role to play in that, Brother. You are a very important member of this family to me, and if something happened to you, I'd be very...upset."

"I didn't think you were capable of being so emotional," Hakuryuu remarked.

"Can you tell me," Kouen said, "why Kougyoku hates me?"

"What?"

"Yes, she's been avoiding me constantly and I don't know what I did wrong. Is there something I can do to make her relationship with me better?"

"She's just shy, that's all. Kougyoku!" Hakuryuu called out.

The little redhead paused and flushed. "E-En-nii!"

"Kougyoku, we need to talk."

"A-about what?" She said.

"Our relationship."

" _Relationship_? No, it's not like that!" She hid her face in her sleeves.

"I don't mind the feelings you have for my stepbrother. You two may have a relationship if you wish, but if you mistreat Kougyoku-"

"I won't, I'll be good to her!" He said, bowing.

"I already knew you would," He said, patting the boy's head.

"Now, Kougyoku," He said, "Tell me, if ever you feel Zepar in your head again."

"Yes, Brother," She said quietly.

"I believe in your abilities. You're a very strong warrior and a metal vessel user. Please don't feel afraid of me. You can come to me about anything."

Kougyoku came forward and gingerly hugged her brother, blushing deeply.

"E-en-nii? Are you sick? Why are you expressing emotion?"

"Am I not allowed to express emotion?" Kouen questioned.

"It's kind of scary!" Hakuryuu snapped.

"Very scary, but I was so scared, brother."

And before he knew it, she was a sobbing mess in his arms.

Oh, great, a crying woman. He hated to sound sexist, but he had no clue what to do when women started crying. What was he supposed to do?

Men crying, that was an easier thing. He would just let Kouha or Koumei go to their rooms and inflict physical harm on their belongings.

"It's okay to cry," Hakuryuu said.

Well...

The whole rukh thing certainly explained why Hakuryuu was so predisposed to knowledge of feminine things. But other than that, he was still just an ordinary teenage boy. Regardless, he was who he was now, his brother, and that wasn't going to change.

"I would like to ask for your assistance, from both of you." He said, "As you both know, you cannot go into the country of Magnostadt, as you do not have any magic, which means that your two friends, the Saluja brat and the Fanalis, will have to stay here as well."

"You mean Alibaba and Morgiana?" Hakuryuu said.

"Yes, none of them possess any magic. If you four really wish, you may stay here under protection, but I take it that's not what you want to do."

They both nodded.

"Kougyoku, I think it best for your safety that you stay with Hakuryuu. He can protect you. Of course, that Magi can greatly assist with taking that Djinn out of your mind. He is a Magi, after all."

"But I don't like that boy! He's so rude and...oh, all right." She muttered, "He's better than that man, at least."

"Good, I will talk to you all later." Kouen said, he was tired. He needed a long nap.

Working out his problems and talking to his siblings was so difficult, but he couldn't help but feel like he'd made a difference.

* * *

Hakuryuu's pov

I stared at the spot where Kouen had been in complete shock.

Not only had he believed me, he'd also said that he'd appreciated me, admired my strength, and didn't consider me a weirdo or a reject of the family. He believed in reincarnation.

"What did you and En-nii talk about?" Kougyoku said.

"Nothing in particular, Lady Kougyoku-I mean, Kougyoku! Just the weather, just ordinary things-"

I looked down, and stopped. Oh great, one of those lovely "man things."

"Um, Haku-chan, what's wrong?" She said, stepping towards me, "What's that?"

"Nothing!" I yelped, "It's something guys get that girls don't, that's all!"

"Oh," She said, "Is it some kind of bug bite?"

"No, definitely not!" I yelled, definitely determined to get out of this situation.

"Haku-chan, it could be a bad bug bite. Let me look at it!"

"No, it's nothing, seriously!"

"All right, then." She said, "If you want to get an infection and die-"

"I'm not gonna die!" I snapped.

"If it stings, it stings. I'm not gonna help you if you complain." She said, "So Haku-chan, you really...?"

"Yes, I do care about you, and I want you to be safe."

"What about Ali...?"

I silenced her with a kiss on the cheek. "He has Morgiana. Besides, those two are probably busy enjoying themselves. Kouha has been looking after them."

"Kouha-nii will entertain them." Kougyoku said, which was enough for me.

I smiled. "Yes."

For once, I felt like I belonged in this country.

Like I was the real Hakuryuu.

This was peace.

But it was just the calm. The calm before the storm.

This would be no ordinary storm, it would be the determining of all our destinies, not just me.


End file.
